Don't Forget To Smile
by Gus Kinney The Prodigal Son
Summary: 'in a last ditch effort to get his fathers attention, angel turns to thievery and murder, the only problem is his fathers the king Of hell and hes put on a fast track of a strange hellish tournament his father is holding.
1. It's not easy

The year was 2000, peace had come to heaven and hell where angel and demon alike could love each other. In this time Lucifer had a son named Angel and everyone was happy. for they thought a day like this would never come.

 _13 years later_

 _New York City Leman Manhattan Preparatory School_

Angel is at the top of his class. He is refined, smart, and a good looking teen. Class was just about to start when the teacher came in. "Angel, I am always happy to see you here so early my boy!" The teacher said with a smile on his face as he walked over to his desk and sat down, getting ready for class he had to teach.

Angel looked over from the window. "Oh, hi there Mr. Hartley," the boy said as he went back to looking outside in boredom.

The teacher saw this and went up to him. He sat in one of the desks near Angel. "What seems to trouble you, my boy?" He asks with a worried look upon his face.

Angel came out of the zone and looked back at his teacher. "Sorry, Mr. Hartley, I just don't know what to do with my life. People think it's easy being the son of Lucifer." He picks his head up to look into a mirror. The teacher looks at the boy and asks, "Have you tried talking with your dad?"

Angel smiles. "He doesn't have any time for me. He's always away from home and never comes to see me. Not even on my birthday. He spends time with all the other noble kids. I heard he was in London, of all places, and he's been there for a year!" The teen puts his head down on the desk.

The teacher rubs his back, trying to comfort him. "You know what," Angel picked his head up to look up at his teacher, "you have always done good in school. It's alright if you want to go home. Get some rest. You to do this for homework." Mr. Hartley packed the boy's stuff into his bag. Angel stood, getting some pleasure in his day as he took his bag and ran out the door.

With him having to walk home, he took time to think about his life. "I'm the son of Lucifer, that's a big one," he says to himself. _What will people want me to do? Why can't I do what I want?!_ He starts to get angry with himself while he thinks. Why the hell does he not want to spend time with me? What the fuck kind of father does that? He won't be winning father of the year that's for damn sure. He stops in the park. Would they make me get married? Would they make him be just like his father, he wonders to himself as he walks to the middle of the park. All of this keeps going through his mind. He starts to shake, "they can't make me. Won't let them make me their tool." His anger builds up so much he could not take it anymore. He screams out loud and everyone in the park turned their heads to look at him.

Angel runs the rest of the way home. "Mom, are you home?" He asks with no answer. Angel goes to the kitchen and sees a note on the table from his mom. _Hi honey, I had to go with Ashley, it's her big opening week so I couldn't say no. I hope you understand, I'll be back later._

"I wonder if dad even knows that moms gay," he asks the note. Being alone in the big house no big deal, but his mom is another thing that pissed him off. She treated him more like a friend then her son. If he was to run off and never come back would one of them even notice that he was gone?

He lays out his things for school tomorrow then goes to take a shower. He stops in front of a mirror to look at himself. What is the point in all of this? Why was I born? It's like I just wasn't needed. Why have a son at all? He turns on the water and takes a shower. When he comes out he hears his dad's voice on TV. He was still in the United Kingdom, going over things with noble kids. "You have a son mother fucker!" he screams at the TV before turning it off. He lays on bed mad and then grabs his hair. _What the hell am I going to do,_ he wonders, before falling asleep.

When his alarm goes off in the morning, Angel wakes up to face the day again. He dresses, trying not to look into the mirror. _I don't see anything in it._ He grabs his coat and leaves for school. Angel always got to class an hour early (there wasn't anything better for him to do). Mr. Hartley comes in and sees angel sitting at his desk, as always. "Hello my boy, you still look like someone ran over your dog. You want to talk about it?"

Angel picks his head up. "I guess so."

Mr. Hartley sits down in front of him, "I already know what you're going to say, so listen to what I have to say; it might help." Angel looks at him and waits. "Everyone goes through what you're going through. They feel like there is no meaning for them in this world, but sometimes they find their gift to the world and to themselves. Some don't because they let people keep them down. They let people walk all over them. What I'm trying to say is," the teacher put his hands on Angel's shoulders. "Don't let them if you stop them, then you can show the world, heaven, and hell what you can do. Only then can you find it."

Mr. Hartley stops and goes back to his desk. Angel sat there, staring at his teacher. "What?"

Mr. Hartley looks up from his desk to the boy and said, "your smile."


	2. Gathering

With Mr. Hartley's words still ringing in his ears, Angel slowly headed for home. He wouldn't have been able to live with himself if he just sat back and watched everything unfold, he _had_ to do something. The only question was what. He floated through the sea of people on his way home, a rock of uncertainty in the waves of humanity. There may not have been anything he was capable of doing, his only option may have been to do everything his pride told him not to, even if it meant regretting the decision. The only thing Angel could think of doing was try to get in contact with his father, but he didn't even know where to start, he didn't even think his mother knew how to get a hold of him.

Angel paused at his mailbox, and grabbed the few letters inside, before unlocking the front door and wandering into the living room. He dropped his bag by the door, then left the bills on the table along with the keys to his house. Silence rang in his ears as he moved towards the living room, eventually settling on the creaky couch. He turned the TV on, still tuned into the news station from yesterday. The reporters droned on about some fluff piece involving one of the local schools. He sprawled out on his back and carefully tore open the letter from his mom. A small smile crossed his features as a picture of her and her girlfriend, Ashley, fell out, and skimmed the brief note his mother had wrote. In some places her lopsided letters blended together, but it wasn't sloppy enough to be considered illegible. _Hi sweetheart, how's school going? Everything is going well here, and I wish you could have come with us. It will still be a few days before I can come home, so take care._

With a sigh, he slid the letter and picture back into the envelope then placed it on the coffee table as a special report came on. "This just in, we've received word that Lucifer and his accompanying party of Nobles will be hosting a conference later this evening at Madison Square Garden. We have yet to receive word of what this meeting will address, but as we will keep you updated with the latest news. Next up-

Angel clicked off the TV and sat in silence for a few moments. Horns blared in the distance, and the clock on the wall ticked off the passing seconds while he lay there, immersed in his thoughts. This was the opportunity he had been looking for. If he could just somehow find his father at the conference, he might have been able to shine some light on this whole situation. With some patience, and a little luck, by the end of the evening Angel might have been safely back in his home with most of his problems solved.

The couch squeaked in protest as he stood again. Angel brought his bag into his room, and changed out of his uniform, before easing himself into his desk chair and chipping away at bits and pieces of his homework. He couldn't stay focused on any one subject for too long. Eventually he left his books abandoned on the desk and threw on a deep pocketed hoodie. On his way through the house he turned on a few lights, and grabbed his keys off the counter. There was no way to tell when he would be back, and he didn't want to return to a pitch black house. Angel took care to lock the front door, before dragging his bike out and hopping on and making his way downtown.

Nobles from the corners of the world were gathering in New York for the first summit meeting this side of the century. Thousands of humans had gathered around the Square in hopes of glimpsing the inner workings of the society they had integrated themselves with. The massive sea of people spanned a few blocks, and with it, vanished Angels hopes of sneaking in through the front. There was no feasible way for him to work his way through all these people with enough time left over to find where his father was. _There has to be another way in_. With a sigh, he walked his bike through the outer ring of the crowd, working his way forwards in a serpentine pattern until the crowd thinned and he could mount it again.

Several guards had been posted along the front of the building to prevent any particularly adventurous souls from wandering inside and harassing the still gathering demons. Every once and awhile the more vain of the Nobles would brave the crowd and calmly slip inside without so much as a sideways glance to the inferior species. If many of them had gotten their way, the humans would have been a lot less than the equals they thought themselves to be. Despite the executive order to stop the fighting, many of them eagerly awaited any reason to pit themselves against the humans. It wasn't like they had anything to offer them other than their souls and the treaty that had been made could only last for so long.

Angel stashed his bike down some long abandoned side street. After surveying the back of the building, and getting chased off several times, he spotted a large truck pulling up to the loading bay, and waited nearby in the shadows. When the coast was clear in-between several large crates being brought inside, Angel took his chance and snuck inside. He stayed close to the wall as he crept around the room. Some of the delivery crew cut back and forth a few more times, and he hid himself behind some of the temporarily placed crates. Angel kept his eyes trained on the room they were bringing everything, as their comings and goings became less and less frequent. The metal door to the loading bay slid shut, followed by the doors of the truck opening and closing, then the truck drove off. There was no way to tell if they were done or when they would be coming back, so he made quick work of slipping into the back rooms. His footsteps echoed off the concrete floor and the pounding of his heart rang in his ears as he tried to pick up on anything other than his own pounding and his beating heart.

Most of the doors he wandered past were either locked or opened into empty rooms. Voices carried out of some of them, but most of the occupants weren't speaking English, so the snippets of various conversations he caught made no sense to him. With a soft sigh he stopped in the middle of another hallway, and looked around. Everything looked the same to him down to the last crack in the floor. How long could he realistically wander around down here without getting caught? He didn't stand a chance in a fight, let alone if there was more than one of them. _Where am I supposed to go?_

He froze when one of the doors opened and ducked into the closest room, which was thankfully unlocked. He quickly closed the door back and looked around the cluttered room, before climbing behind a stack of crates and camping there. He could hear the footsteps of whoever had entered the hallway gradually getting louder, then they stopped just outside the room Angel had decided to hide in.

From where he was hidden away behind the crates, Angel held his breath, almost certain that whoever it was would come in here and find him. Everything would be over before it had even started. It can't be over not yet. Time slowed as the knob turned, and in came a group of several demons.

Angel pressed his back against the wall and waited until he heard the door click shut again. It was obvious from their style of dress and their accents that they were all from different walks of life. If it hadn't been for this meeting they probably wouldn't have gathered here in the first place. To call them anything more than business acquaintances would be a blatant lie. They were from different factions, but shared a common interest, and the group ranged from experienced warriors to the newest Nobel who had wormed his way into the position by inheritance alone. A man with a stock build and a thick, German accent was the first to speak, but he seemed to have been picking up from a previous tangent, because he didn't bother with an introduction. "As you are all aware of, I'm sure, you're here because we stand as the ones with the highest chance of taking the bride for ourselves."

A smaller man with a more delicate accent and refined speech pattern interrupted, "you really wanted us here so you can weed out the lesser competition. Do not think he has forgotten where your loyalties lie just because you are playing nice. I, for one, shall not bend a knee to you in the tournament."

The German glared at him, daring him to continue with his unwarranted comment. "As the tournament commences we need to assure that some of out lesser comrades don't stand a chance at stealing her away from us. It's been hundreds of years since the last time we actually had a decent offering, and I have as much intention of keeping her for myself as I'm sure you do."

The youngest of the group nodded in agreement, despite not having all the details of what was going on. He was far less informed than the others were, but given his elders all vying for a chance to prove themselves he wished to do the same. Maybe then he would be taken seriously and would be considered more than a pretty face (which he mostly was). He knew enough to ask, "What did this one do?"

Aside from offering up humans with particularly strong souls, the rest of the brides had done something that would often warrant a far worse fate than being sold as someone's bride. During the war many of rebels had been captured for various purposes, mostly display minions, but some others had been placed in the same position as their latest offering. There were still some holdovers that had been tucked away in various places around the world for the right time, and apparently now was that time.

With a sigh, the slender man removed a piece of lint from his sleeve and explained, "from what I've heard," he glanced at the German, silently daring him to challenge what he was saying. "She's one of commanders of the Nephlim army, of course one would not think that upon first glance. Poor thing actually believes someone will come to save her. And she nearly took out one of the guards eyes on the way over. Best keep a close eye on this one, it'll take a lot to break her."

The German rolled his eyes, "you and your sub servant women, no wonder you can't hold your own in a real fight."

"Unlike you I don't like to house rebels, they cause far too much trouble. You have to train them early otherwise you could have a serious problem on your hands. I would have thought you would have learned that by now. Especially with your brother's _unfortunate incident._ "

A low growl ripped through his chest and he took a small step forward until he was inches away from his perceived aggressor. "Say that again, I dare you."

"Are you hard of hearing as well as lacking intelligence? Your thick skull must put an enormous amount of pressure on your brain." The younger of the pack took an anxious step back, not wanting to be in the way if the two started a brawl in the less than suitable space.

The door opened again, but instead of another demon it was one of the movers with more crates. "Excuse us Gentlemen, we have more crates to unload."

There was some shuffling, and a loud thud as more boxed were brought into the room and set down in the back. Angel breathed a sigh of relief when silence finally rang in his ears, and he took a chance to escape while he could.

While he wasn't entirely out of the woods yet, his mind was a hive of activity. Did he dare continue to search for his father? Or should he had tried to find the girl? They wouldn't have just left her alone, but he couldn't just let this happen could he? The thought of someone being handed off like some sort of commodity made his blood boil. People weren't prizes to be one. They were living, breathing things that had the right to choose what they wanted. It was wrong. All of it was wrong and it didn't sit right with him. He turned another corner, and ventured down another empty hallway. This was going to end here and now no matter what it took.


	3. Ironic

Chapter 3

Angel continued his search down the concrete labyrinth in search of his father. Determination burned deep within the young boy, but instead of discovering his father behind one of the many closed doors, he came across the promised bride.

His blood ran cold as he stumbled across the darkened room. Every fiber of his being told him not to tread further into the poorly lit room, but his curiosity was also piqued. Angel's desire to know, and longing to understand the world he should have been a part of won over his initial repulsion, and e ventured forward into the unknown. He stood in the open doorway long enough to get his bearings, before closing it back and wandering into the large room. The air hummed with electricity and even after his eyes adjusted to the gloom he couldn't figure out it's exact source.

Angel lingered in the doorway long after he had closed the door back. Apprehension pricked at the back of his neck as he slowly placed one foot in front of the other. Despite the room being empty, he could feel eyes on him, like any minute a group of demons would appear out of the shadows and bring him to justice in the only way they knew how. A chill ran down his spine as he approached the covered over box towards the back of the room. The humming grew louder as he approached, and he came to realize that it was coming from the box. Angel stopped an arms length away. His heart pounded in his chest, and he thought about turning back more than once. No harm done. In and out without messing with anything. Nobody would have even known he was there.

The same thing that drove him to enter the room to begin with drove him forward once more, until his fingertips brushed against the rough fabric of the huge cloth. He took a deep breath and gripped the fabric in his hand, then pulled it back. The bars on the cage beneath sparked when a corner of the fabric touched it and Angel jumped backwards. He stumbled over himself and landed on his backside a few feet away from the iron cage. The bars were unnecessarily thick, at least to Angel they were, considering all that was inside was a sleeping girl who looked a few years older than he was. _What's she doing here?_

He struggled to his feet, but remained frozen where he was, unable to tear his eyes away from her. There was something about her that felt different than most people. Even while she lay there sleeping a strange energy radiated from her, and it soothed his shaky nerves. A quiet song just barely in the range of his hearing floated through the room. Angel couldn't be sure if it was real or not. He could have been imagining the whole thing. The song was never loud enough for him to be able to make out any words, but he thought he recognized the melody. The only problem was figuring out where it had come from. It reminded him of home, back before his mother started running off to do her own thing and leaving him behind. Long nights spend up watching a movie or two. Saturday mornings when she would make him breakfast and they'd spend the day together.

Before he could get swept away on the wave of nostalgia he quickly replaced the cloth and left the room. It wasn't until he was long gone when he managed to put two and two together to figure out that girl was supposed to have been the prize in the tournament those demons had been talking about. A small part of him had wished he had thought to do something sooner, but was there for him to do? Electric current aside, he couldn't remember seeing a way to even open the cage. They wouldn't have just left it unlocked for her to walk out when she awoke, and he didn't have any means to the lock let alone find the key.

Angel jammed his hands in his pockets to stop from them shaking and ducked into a doorway when he heard voices. One would have thought back here would be emptier, the summit was less than an hour away yet it seemed like everyone was still aimlessly wandering around. The pair walked by Angel, either not noticing the young boy, or not caring enough to call him out. Before they had a chance to come back Angel slipped off, not wanting to risk another close encounter.

In his haste to leave, he failed to see the pair enter the room he had been entranced in moments before. A few of the lights came on when the older of the pair flicked the switch. The others had been blown, or blinked on and off with an obnoxious buzzing. After the previous incident with the girl, the lower of the demon's in Lucifer's legion, drew straws to see who would be stuck transporting the Nephlim soldier. Even while she was heavily sedated, she posed a threat to the rest of them, especially if one of the more rebellious angels caught wind of this. In a matter of hours the demons could have another war on their hands and this time it would have been open season on the humans that supported them. "Where are we bringing it anyway?"

The younger of the pair lingered in the doorway, his eyes darting nervously around the small space. "Nowhere if you don't get your ass over here and help me with this. The cloth touched the cage and sparked, causing both the demons to jump and back away from the cage. They stared at one another, wondering what would happen if their cargo was to wake up during transport. "You stay here and I'll-

"Why do I have to stay here?" The older demon shoved his younger companion farther into the room with an irritated huff. "It's your fault I'm here in the first place. I won't be gone long."

The younger demon watched him go with a sigh, and stayed as close to the door as he could without leaving the room, his eyes never leaving the covered metal prison.

Elsewhere, Angel grew closer to his destination with each step he took, although he had yet to realize it himself. While his surroundings remained unfamiliar, he knew he had been going around in circles. _This is hopeless...I never should have come._ He pressed his back against the wall and closed his eyes. _I should just go home._ He glanced in the direction of where he thought the exit was before heaving himself off the wall and trudging down the hallway. He paid little attention to his surroundings, and barely picked up on anything going on around him. A fog had settled over his mind, and all he wanted at this moment was to be home in a familiar environment. Maybe then he'd be able to come up with a plan that was better than this. For now, Angel would have to content himself with sitting by and doing nothing. While he may have felt like he had to do something, sometimes, doing the opposite was just as effective.

Angel opened a door at random, assuming it was to lead outside or at least to the main lobby, but was he wrong. He blinked in the sudden bright light and stood in the doorway of another room, more dazed and confused. A boy was pinned in place atop the make-shift desk he had been sitting on by a much taller and older man. They both looked to the door when it opened, falling silent and staring at when Angel stood. The older one straightened, and brushed aside some of his black hair. While he didn't recognize Angel, he didn't think much of it. He couldn't name, let alone put a face, to many of his underlings. To memorize everything would require thrice the number of hours in a day and then some. It wasn't worth the effort since they were always coming and going. He knew the important ones, and that was all that counted.

He could also sense there was something different about the boy that stood before him. While for all intents and purposes he could be mistaken for one of them, it was obvious he wasn't, at least not entirely. Even if he hadn't taken the time out of his day to keep an eye on his underlings, the demon king would have kept on top of any rumors of a half-ling running around in their ranks. He surely would have received some criticisms for it when he was drawn into forging the treaty in the first place. He turned, and rested his lower back against the desk, a coy smirk playing on the corners of his mouth as he purred, "is there anything I can help you with?"

Angel's blood ran cold as he stood there, unable to break through the jumbled mass of thoughts in his head long enough to form any sort of response. He blinked once. Then twice, and stupidly looked behind him in hopes of being saved by a poorly timed interruption. He wasn't. Through the fog that clouded his mind, he finally managed to kick himself into gear and quickly shook his head, managing to break free from his momentary trance and back into the hallway. _Wait, wasn't there...?_

In the time it took for Angel to notice the younger of the pair's disappearance, the boy had already reappeared behind Angel and was shoving him far enough into the room so the door could be closed back; trapping Angel inside with them. Unlike his black-haired counterpart, the boy preferred not to play games when it came down to business, something he had, surprisingly enough, grown out of over the years. In turn, he had picked up some other, more desirable traits. He commanded almost as much respect as the devil himself, if not more.

Angel inched away from the shorter boy, while keeping his distance from the taller one as well. It was all he could do at this point. "That wasn't a question."

Angel's eyes widened in fright, coaxing a bemused chuckled from the older demon. "No need to scare the poor thing."

His red-brown eyes turned a pink color, and he took a step closer to Angel, who took a measured one back. "I- I just got turned around is all my mistake."

The boy wasn't as all convinced, and remained where he was in front of the door. He folded his arms over his chest and looked to his counterpart to take the wheel. This was, after all, his idea. The meeting could have easily been held back in their realm, away from the prying eyes of the humans but he had insisted that they hold it here, of all places. One of the major population centers in the country and televised no less. This meeting was nothing more than an elaborated attention seeking meet and greet in attempts to quell the storm before it arrived. When compared to everything that was about to go on, and what the humans were completely in the dark about, it was a joke. One sick twisted joke suitable for the devil himself. "You aren't one of ours, where did you come from?"

"Around, like I said I'm not supposed to be here."

"You're right. You aren't. Maybe's he's friends with your newest toy, Sebastian."

The one who had been addressed as Sebastian gave Angel a not so thorough once over. If he had come here with the intention of freeing the Nephlim he would have been armed to the teeth, let alone be wasting time here bantering with the unusual pair. And he would have been able to pick up on their presence here long before actually entering the room and would have steered clear; assuming he knew what was good for him. "Ciel, I thought you were smarter than that. He would have tried killing us by now, not standing there like a deer caught in headlights. Perhaps he is lost. Wouldn't it be our job to-

"It would be _your_ job. I'm not here to earn you points with the humans."

Sebastian tipped his head to the side, smirking at Ciel and trying to goad him into an outburst. "Remind me, why _are_ you here?"

Angel inched away from Ciel when he glared at Sebastian, not wanting to be caught in the crossfire if a fight should break out. "To pick up your slack. It's obvious you can't do your job by yourself. And if this... _child_ insists on sticking his nose where it doesn't belong, it's your job to make sure he doesn't go running his mouth off to every tabloid and news anchor this side of the globe."

The fact that Ciel seemed no older than he was, yet had the nerve to call him a child, brought Angel to a tipping point. He wasn't going to sit back and let them talk about him as if he wasn't standing right there. He wasn't a child, and refused to be treated as one. "I couldn't care less about any of that stuff! I'm just here to find Lucifer, he's my dad."

Ciel covered his mouth with his hand in a half-baked attempt to hide his smile. He was having a hard time imagining any of the demons here giving a normal human the time of day let alone conceive a child with one. Sebastian didn't even try to hide his skepticism, and smiled at Angel before asking in a patronizing tone, "Of course little one, you've been reading too many stories."

"It's true!"

Sebastian rolled his eyes, giving Angel a reassuring pat on the shoulder before giving him an encouraging push towards the door, which Ciel had so ungraciously opened. "Of course, of course, now run along before your missed."

Angel remained where he stopped and folded his arms over his chest. "I'm not going anywhere until you take me to him." Sebastian fell strangely silent while a bought of laughter nearly overcame Ciel, who had found Angel about as threatening as a bunny. Ciel was still to unaware of detecting the presence of others to have felt it, but Angel's little outburst had left Sebastian convinced that Angel hadn't been lying. Ciel's smile faded almost immediately when he noticed Sebastian standing there quietly, and tried to figure out what Sebastian knew that he didn't. As he had come to realize, Sebastian was older than most of the demons here, and had worked his way through the ranks until he was where he was now, one of His favorite demons. Sebastian got away with far more than most could, and as a result he was let in on a lot of top secrets going on that most had failed to realize ever happens even decades later. Ciel intently studied Angel's face, trying to put two and two together in the moments it would take his mate to figure out the right course of action.

Sebastian ignored Ciel's sideways glances and halfhearted glares for the time being. When he had been given the task to place His child somewhere safe, he assumed it was just because his master wanted to feel safe should something happen to him. Or a bargaining chip. He hadn't asked about the child since Sebastian got relocated it so he hadn't bothered checking up on him either. Neither one of them had stopped to think long enough about the little incident that it might have shown up years later. Sebastian brushed back some of his black hair with a sigh, thinking, _when will they abandon their sentimentality?One of these days it will be their downfall._

Ciel was the one to break the silence that had fallen among them by harshly demanding, "Sebastian, what's going on?"

Sebastian's demeanor quickly changed when he realized they were both watching him, and he smiled. "Don't worry yourself with such things." Ciel folded his arms over his chest. Any hopes of letting Angel just walk out of here were gone in the wind. Despite all the years that had passed, when it came to Ciel Sebastian's memory tended to be... _selective_. "Don't give me that, it's nothing you need to concern yourself with other pressing matters to attend too."

His eyes narrowed, and he remained planted where he was. "If I don't need to worry about it then I don't see why you can't tell me. I'm not stupid Sebastian."

A smirk spread across the older demon's face as he took in his disgruntled mate. "My life would be so much easier if you were." He crossed to Ciel and cupped the boys face in his hands, however he was feeling less than affectionate. Ciel pushed his hands away and rolled his eyes, "If I was you'd never get anything done."

"You're one to talk, I've never been caught sleeping on the job."

Ciel's cheeks turned pink and he looked away, stepping around Sebastian in the process. "That was a long time ago!"

"And I'll never forget. You still doze with the windows open."

Ciel changed the subject, taking Sebastian's place near the rickety table. "Don't you think it's time you take the child to go see his father. He must be a very busy man if you were left to babysit it."

Angel frowned balling his hands into a fists inside his pockets. First they kept him trapped here and now Ciel kept talking about him as if he was some pet, or worse. Was it too much for him to ask to be treated like a person? "I have a name you know."

"And I don't care. Sebastian you have half an hour to get this nonsense sorted out or I'll do it myself."

Sebastian draped one of his arms around Angel and herded the young boy out of the room. "You wouldn't even know where to start."

Ciel huffed in irritation, offering no verbal response to Sebastian's latest retort before the door closed back. Sebastian let his arm return to his side, and Angel took a step away from him, wanting some distance between himself and the one who was claiming to have been taking him to his father. It all felt so surreal to him. After all these years the one thing he wanted most was not happening. In a matter of minutes he'd come face to face with the man who had helped give him life. "Do you think he'll actually see me?"

Angel looked to Sebastian, wondering if he would actually get a serious answer from him. Despite his stoic demeanor he didn't seem very serious, unless that's just how he was around Ciel. "Who knows. It depends on His mood. I for one don't know why he didn't just feed you to the wolves. It's not my place to question."

Angel stared at the concrete floor, taking his hands out of his pockets long enough to pull down his sleeves before replacing them. He felt cold now, as if the heat was slowly being drained from him. "Why are you so sure he didn't want me?"

"We are not a pack of animals like you humans are. A lot of us aren't happy with this arrangement either, a dead human here or there or some 'tragic accident' was nothing to bat an eye at. It's a matter of biding time until someone slips up and we have an excuse to be at the throats of the Angels once again. Ironic isn't it. He named you after their only saving grace."

Angel frowned, looking to Sebastian for any signs of a meaning to his words. "I don't get it..."

"I wouldn't expect you too. Those are questions better left for you father." Sebastian stopped outside an ajar door and told Angel to wait in the hall. Angel reluctantly waited in the hall. He could hear them talking quietly among one another. While he couldn't make out any words, the man with a deeper voice seemed to do all the talking, and he spoke quickly, with urgency. Dread knotted itself in Angel's stomach, and he once again began to regret coming here. What was he supposed to do if his dad decided to send him away? All this would have been for nothing.

Sebastian reemerged minutes later and held the door open for Angel while motioning him inside. "Your father will see you now."


	4. One of those's days

Chapter four is here and i have a beta reader called Rei Blackstone so i would like to thank Rei Blackstone for the help much love

"Your father will see you now," Sebastian said as he beckons Angel into the room to come in so he starts to walk to the door, and turns to the demon Sebastian who just smiles at the boy.

"Your father is waiting," Sebastian gentle pushes him into the room and the demon follows, closing the door.

Angel turns to him "don't touch me" he said to the demon. Sebastian just leaned on the door and then he walked up to the desk, the person in the chair was looking out the window. Angel stood there in silently for a moment then he finally spoke, "Hello."

That is all he said to the man, then the chair turns to face the boy.

"Hello, Angel. Have a seat," he said with a smile. Angel does just that, but does not take his eyes off the man.

"How are you doing boy," the man leans in as he asks the question.

"Let's see: I live alone, my mom is with her rock n roll love, mom's a lesbian by the way, don't know when or if I will see her again. So yeah that's how I've been doing so how about you dad?" Angel had all of that in him for a long time Lucifer looked at the boy and gave him a smile. Angel glared back at him.

"For this now, that sounds like a lot. Now, I don't know how to say this to you my boy because of the One Law between heaven and hell, but things have changed. It got us out of hell but the law is to be obeyed, so no Armageddon, we might not like it but we found a way to bend that One Law by taking the bad people of the world, just like the young lady we have with us..."

"What makes her and her people so bad, dad?" Angel interrupted him which did not make Lucifer happy.

"The young lady and the others have broken the One Law, so when we catch them…

"We will punish them by making them into brides," Angel interrupted again, this made Lucifer lose his smile.

"There is nothing wrong with what we do boy and I don't need…"

Angels stands up, "and by the way the name is not 'boy', the name is Angel."

This made the third time he had interrupted Lucifer and this made him stand up as well, "You want the truth Angel?"

He hated the words coming out of his mouth "Then here it is, I had Sebastian send you to that house, away from me cause of the One Law. I don't need you. I would have given you to the wolves if it was not for the One Law."

Angel stood there for a moment saying nothing, he looked over at Sebastian and rolled his eyes at him Sebastian smiled and then he said, "Then why have me born?"

Lucifer interrupted him this time, "The One Law is there for everyone. We all go by it, if not we go back to hell but that does not mean I have to keep you!" Lucifer sat back down, "Now you can leave. I have things to do."

Sebastian opened the door, Angel just stood there looking at him, "You're a monster, and you gave up your blood your son cause of the law." Angel screamed in tears that made Sebastian stop walking towards him. Lucifer looked up at him, "Your breaking my heart," he said by holding his chest.

"Sebastian make sure he leaves," just as he said that Angel hit him and made him bleed. That stunned Lucifer and Sebastian, as Lucifer reached up to his face where he was hit, he pulled his hand away to see the blood.

"Sebastian!" he yelled "Make sure he gets back home in one piece, if you please."

"Of course, sir," Sebastian moved to Angel and put his hand on his shoulder. Angel did not take his eyes off of the man he knew as his father.

"One of these days, someone like her is going to end you and you will have nothing left and the only person you can blame is some whiny little bitch of a fallen Angel," Angel pulled his coat tight around him for the cold air outside was bitter.

He turned to Sebastian and gave a smile, "This place is a maze, so I do need help," he pulled his hand out for Sebastian to take. He took it and they both walked out the room, they stopped just outside the door, as the door closed Angel breathed heavily, "I don't know how any of you put up with that jackass."

Sebastian smiled at this and came away from the door, "Did you get what you wanted?" Sebastian asked.

"Yes, I did Seb," Angel replied and started to walk again. He saw the bride being locked up on stage, so that when the show began the crowd could see her. Angel and the bride made eye contact for as long as they could. The curtain fell and he and the demon kept walking, the demons and nobles were looking at him all the way to the exit. Sebastian opened the door, Angel turned around and said "Take a damn picture why don't you."

Sebastian laughed as they walked out, "the car is over there," Sebastian pointed at the black car.

"I came here on my bike," Angel said as he walked over to it. Sebastian was behind him as he walked over to the bike, "He told me to make sure to get you home in one piece, so I will put the bike in the back, and take you home. So you will have to deal with it."

Angel rolled his eyes, "Just trying to help save you time," Angel said as he put his bike into the trunk of the car. Sebastian came over to help him.

"Don't worry about me, little one," he told him as he closed the trunk, "There we go now. All you have to do is get in and I can take you home." Sebastian opened the door for him. Angel had a smile on his face and gave his hand as if he were a lady, this made Sebastian smile as he helped him into the car. Then he got into the driver's seat, blew the horn, "Where to miss?" he said playfully.

"To the stars," Angel said in a lady like voice into Sebastian's ear. This makes Sebastian look into the mirror and say "You're too young for me to do that to you my lady," this makes Angel turn red all over.

"You got to come back and find me in five years," Sebastian said. He started the car and drove off to his house Sebastian looked back at him to see Angel had a smile on his face.

"Why do you smile so much?" he asked.

Angel looked up and said, "A kind man once told me to never forget to smile. So I never will and never let anybody take that away from me. So there you go and there is the house."

Sebastian pulled up and stopped the car. He got out and opened the door for Angel. He held his hand out for Angel to take, Angel gave him his hand and was pull out the car. He got Angel's bike out for him.

"Thank you for the help and for being nice to me," Angel said as he gave a big smile that made Sebastian smile.

"At this you're welcome, my lady." He took his hand and kissed it which made Angel blush. Sebastian looked into his eyes, "I'll see you in five years," he said with a wink and a smile. "Take care little one he said as he lets go of his hand and heads back to the car.

"Sebastian!" Angel shouted out to him as he was getting back in the car, "Are you happy with the way things are? Or do you hate the way you have to be? He makes all of you be this way. No more souls cause of the One Law?" This made Sebastian think of what to say to the boy.

"I liked the way things were in the old days, but that's just me. I just have to deal with what I got and so do you," he said before he got into the car and started to drive off back to the garden. Angel just stood there looking at the car until he couldn't see it anymore, "maybe it's time someone had to deal with it," he said as he went into his house to get some things ready for school the next day.

Angel went to his room, got his uniform for school and laid it next to his bed. After he did that, he went to take a shower. He turned on the water and letting it run hot. He got something to wear for bed, a black button down shirt and black shorts, so he could get some sleep for school. He looked at his hand, there was a bruise from when he hit his so-called-father.

"The old fucker deserved it and more I don't need someone like him in my life," he said as he turned around to get into the shower. About a half an hour later, he came out of the bathroom, turned off the light and got into bed.

"I'm nothing like him and never will. He has no heart, anybody would be better than him and fuck the One Law," he said to himself before he went to sleep.

Back at the garden Ciel was looking for his mate but found Claude instead.

"Hey," Ciel said after snapping his fingers, "Where is Sebastian?"

The demon looked at the human, "He was told to take Angel back home." Ciel rolled his eyes at hearing that, "By the way, Trancy wants you to be with him tonight." Claude got up to his feet and left to go be with his mate. Ciel went back to his room to wait for Sebastian to get back

Lucifer went to talk with the nobles, "Hello everyone! Now when midnight comes we will began the contest, do any of you have anything you want to ask me," he said to the lot of them. None of the nobles said a word.

"Good, now be back here in three hours, if you are not here by that time you will forfeit. That's all, spend your time the way you want," at Lucifer's words each of them left to get ready. He was alone in the room now, he saw blood on his shirt.

"Fucking kid," he said as he walked back to his room, took off his shirt, and looked in the mirror. At his face where he was bleeding, damn kid, he tried to fix it but couldn't. He was confused at this, he could not stop it, and he had to go to the doctor himself like he was a human.

When Sebastian made it back, he went to Lucifer's room. He knocked on the door, it opened and there stood Lucifer, with makeup on trying to hide the cut and bruise.

"I took him home sir is there anything else you need me to do?"

Lucifer heard his demon, "good I don't need him around me. I can't fix my face cause of that shit, and I don't know why, and now I have to go out in makeup. Just leave me alone for a moment," he said. The demon bowed and left to check on the bride. He saw the lady was already in the cell on the stage.

"Are you in need of food," he asks approaching the cell. She tried to bite him as he got close to the cage, he moved back a few feet.

"I'm not a monster!" she screamed as she tried to break the lock, believing she could. Sebastian waited for her to get tired so he could put food in her cage. They always try to do that thinking 'It's easy', "I find it funny" he thought as he left.

Alois Trancy walked up to him, "Hello. Sebastian your man is waiting for you in your room, so just FYI," he told him as he walked by. Sebastian went to the room, there he found Ciel asleep, and he smiled. He walked over to the bed, laid down and held him until he woke up or when it was time for the event. He smiled at his mate, he looked so sweet when he was asleep.

Back at Angel's, a car pulled up in the driveway and this woke Angel up. He got up and picked up a hockey stick, opening his door and went down the stairs. He stayed in the darkness to wait and see who it was. Two people walked inside, and he jumped out at the two scaring them. "I'll seen you both to the ER if you don't put your hands up now!" he screamed the two put their hands up in the air.

"Yo, kid be cool," one of the two said.

"Sweetie calm down, it's me," at that the one turns on the light to see it was his mom and Ashley.

"The two of you scared the hell out of me," Angel said to the two of them as he put the hockey stick down and closed the door.

"What are you two doing here," he asked.

"Ashley has dates here so we came here while the dates are going on," his mom said and he looked at them.

"Alright I have school tomorrow so I'm going back to the bed," he said as he went up the stairs and left the two alone. The clock hit midnight as his head hit the pillow.

The garden:

Lucifer walked out of his room with makeup on, he went to the room where the nobles were. "Ok now is everyone here?" he said just as he opened the door, they all looked at him. Sebastian was in the room with Ciel beside him. Sebastian walked up to him.

"Yes sir," he said.

Lucifer looked at the nobles, "Now to all of you this is how it works. One at a time, no rules, one stands, the other is down and cannot answer a ten count. We will began as soon as I get to the stage and come back here, so all of you go to the arena and get ready," Lucifer left after those words and went to the stage where a big crowd was waiting for the action to start. He picked up the microphone and spoke to the people.

"Hello everyone! We are here again for the bride event. Here is out lovely bride," as he looked to the cage with the very woman inside, "Now just like before, she is like all the others who came before her. She is a part of the rebellion going on in the world today."

He took the mic and went up to the cage, "Now you can see, if the cameraman can zoom in on her for a moment, here you can all see she is a very beautiful woman," she tried to bite him as he got close to the cage. He pulled back before she could and laughed, "And you can see she is a fighter. That's good for anybody to win and break her in as a bride." the crowd cheered as he said this.

"So now for the moment you all have been waiting for. Who will win and take home the bride. We will find out soon cause the event begins now," he went into the back and to his room to watch the event, like millions of others were doing at that very moment. He was still trying to find out why he was scared by a boy. He had never had this happen to him before in all of his time, but for the time he had his wings ripped off from his back and thrown into hell. He tried to look at the TV but he kept on looking into the mirror beside him.

"I can't take this anymore," he said as he got up from his seat and went to Sebastian.

Sebastian/Ciel's room:

"I'm just happy that the kid is gone for good and we never have to see him again" Ciel said to his mate as they watched the event.

"You never know what the future holds, my dear," Sebastian replied as he kept thinking about today's events, "that kid could be trouble when he gets to a point in his life. As he turns to his lover, because I remember years ago of someone at that age who was a pain in the ass." This made Ciel roll his eyes while he smiled.

"It sounds like he did something for you to have a crush on the devils son," he asked. This made Sebastian smile back at him, "it's just something about him that makes me feel we have not seen the last of him that's all."

Ciel then got on top of him, "it's ok to like him. I think he is cute." this makes both of them smile as Sebastian put his arms around Ciel.

"Now my dear it sounds like you want another in bed with us, am I hearing that right?" he asked. Ciel bit his mate's ear roughly.

"What if I do?" and at that moment a knock came out the door.

"SEBASTIAN!" the one on the other side of the door screamed. This made Sebastian jump out of bed and rush to the open the door and on the other side was Lucifer.

"I need to leave and talk to someone. I'm leaving you in command with everything until I get back," and without waiting for the other to respond he ran out of the garden and left the two demons in shock.

Angel's home:

At 6:00 am Angel woke up from his alarm clock. He got up and went into the bathroom to brush his teeth and hair. He then came out and changed into his school uniform and headed down the stairs. It was 6:15 as he looked at the watch on his wrist, as he walked into the kitchen and Ashley was making breakfast for the three of them. He stood there for a moment, it was odd because he never had anyone to make him anything. He walked to the table and sat down.

"Good morning," his mom said as she walked into the room. They both turned to her good morning as she kissed Ashley and sat in front of her son. He was checking his stuff in his bag to make sure he had everything. She looked at him and asked "how is school?"

This made him stop for a moment and then went back looking, "its fine."

She looked at Ashley, she shook her head, "you meet and make any friends?" that question made him pop his head up quickly.

"Stop asking me," his eyes looked deep into hers.

"I just want to know what my son has been doing," she said as Ashley brought the food over to the table. This made him laugh, "Your son? I haven't been your son, until you walked back into this house last night. Thank you Ashley," he said and then Ashley sat down next to her lover.

"Honey we go into this all the time I leave," Angel heard this and just sat there listening to what his mom said. Ashley turned on the TV and it went to the event.

"We are still bringing you the event to see who will go home with the bride. We will keep on bringing you the footage of the event all the way to the end. Stay with us for the action," the reporter screamed out of the TV. This made Angel look at the TV, "oh and by the way I went down there and got to meet dear old dad. He is a real jackass. He wants nothing to do with me, you know. what I'm gone I'm going to school early I don't care anymore he said as he got up and heads out the door the two look at each other as he slams the door does he get like this all the time when you leave Ashley asks her other she just nods

Angel got his bike out and headed to school. As he rode it started to rain.

"SHIT!" he screamed out loud and rode faster to the school. It was 6:20 am when he got there, he put the bike as close to the entrance as possible and ran inside. He put his helmet in his locker and went to class. he saw Mr. Hartley before he opened the door, he tried to open the door but it was locked so he knocked on the door which brought Mr. Hartley out of his thoughts. He saw Angel at the door and that brought a smile to his face he got up and unlocked the door.

"This is earlier then you used to. Come on in my boy," Angel walked in and sat down at his desk. He got out his homework and gave it to Mr. Hartley who took it. He graded it then gave it back.

"A+ Thank you sir," he said as he went back to his desk. Mr. Hartley looked at the boy he seemed sad about something.

"Is something wrong?" he asked. Angel had always been able to talk with Mr. Hartley about anything, "I went and saw my father at the garden yesterday. And he said that if he could he would have had me killed, because he didn't need me, cause of the One Law."

This makes Mr. Hartley get up from his seat and he sat down next to the boy. "Your father does not know how lucky he is to have a son."

This makes Angel feel a bit better, "Thank you sir. You know what, I'm happy that the One Law came to be, if for one reason, that I didn't turn into a monster like him. I would be a very defiant person in the worst way possible," the boy said as he turned to the window to see the rain come down more.

"You are a great kid and one day not to long from now. You will do something so great, that people will remember you. Trust me, my boy, I can always see something in people that walk into my life and you'll do it all with a smile on your face," the boy turned back to his teacher with a smile on his face and this made him laugh. He patted him on the back and went back to his desk and graded the work.

"I'll do something great with a smile on my face. I only wish I knew what that was, but one day I will," the rain started to come down harder and this made Angel look out the window again.

"I hate when it rains like that. Something bad always happens when it rains like this," it made him get up and go to the window and watch as the clouds came together. He just stayed at the window, as the rain poured down.

Mr. Hartley looked out the window by his desk, "it's going to be one of those days."


	5. My First Time

Angel keeps looking out the window when Mr. Heartly walks up to him. "I have to go to a meeting with the principal but I'll be back soon." Mr. Heartly grabs his brief case then leaves.

Angel stands alone by the window. "What is with her? She thinks she can show up whenever she wants and still be mother of the year? Fuck that. h He sits on the windowsill with a sigh and watches the rain. He couldn't stop thinking about his mom. she thinks being a mom is a part time job.

The class room door opens up and brings Angel out of his thoughts. Mr. Heartly walks back inside,"due to the flooding of the outer city's roads, school will be closed for a week.

Angel turns to him with a sigh. Why does this have to happen now? Angel stands and starts packing his things in his bag to go home, but Mr. Heartly stops him.

It's raining too hard for you to ride you bike home. I can give you a ride when I'm finished here. But for now... He clicks on the TV hanging from the ceiling, it was already turned t the news. Mr Heartly sits at his desk, and Angel returns to sitting on the windowsill. Hello everyone, welcome back to the semifinals of our event and we return to our live feed. Angel hangs his head when he sees whats playing and thinks, here we go again.

The Garden

"Sebastian what the hell was that about? Ciel asks and glares at Sebastian. Sebastian turns to him, with an out of place smile and states, Angel hit him in the face and now he won't stop bleeding.

Ciel looks stunned for a moment. "The lord of hell was taken down by a single punch from a 13 year old boy. h Ciel stares at Sebastian and runs his fingers through his hair. What's this world coming to?

Sebastian thinks for a moment. Maybe the kind of world we need.

It's obvious the prince has some power to him. Ciel folds his arms over his chest, realizing what Sebastian was implying.

Sebastian nods, his coy smile never fading. But he changes the subject. You're very cute when your happy.

Ciel rolls his eyes and says he knows before leaving. Sebastian follows Ciel and they watch the rest of the event. There were only six left so it would be over soon, they just had to wait it out. They pass by the cage where the bride was being held and one of the humans leans against the bar. Who do you think will win, miss? He reaches through the bars and she spits on him. The sight left a bad taste in Ciel's mouth. Back in my day nobles were decent, why do humans have to ruin it?

Sebastian sighs. Times have changed, the world has become an even darker place. The real problem is that law...

Ciel knew Sebastian was right. Years ago if this had happened he might have called him crazy. There's nothing we can do about it.

Brooke's ends up the winner of the match, but the looser insisted he was cheating. The guards had to drag him out of the arena to get ready for the next fight. Sir, there are no rules for this fight. I did nothing wrong.

Just two more before we can leave. Ciel sighs then looks at Sebastian. Where is Lucifer, anyway?

Trying to get his nose fixed no doubt. There's been quite a bit of blood.

And he just left.

I had to take him home, Sebastian corrects. Ciel leans the other way in his chair and rests his head on Sebastian's shoulder. Sebastian puts his arm around Ciel and grabs his hand.

The School

Angel turns off the TV and frowns."Why does this happen? Can't they just go out and find someone?

Mr. Heartly looks at Angel."Its been that way since the turn of the century because of the law."

Then why do people rebel if its better?

Mr Heartly thinks for a moment."People still hate the fact that your father has became the king of the world."

Angel looks up and asks, ghow did he become the king of the world?"

Mr. Heartly stays silent for a moment. "Have you ever seen the bible before?"

Who hasn't? I've seen the old thing but never looked in it. Why?"

Mr, Heartly laughs. "You are the devil's son, anti-

Please don't use that name in front of me" Angel interrupts.

The point I was trying to make is you were supposed to take over the world and bring forth Armageddon.

Angel blinks a few times and slowly stands. "What your saying is that I'm supposed to be the ruler of this Earth?

Yes, supposed to, but because of The Law, that changed. Mr. Heartly rests his hand on Angel's back while he thinks,"but you will do something great, I can feel it." Angel nods and reluctantly turns the Tv back on to watch the event.

Angel's home

The couple were watching TV in the living room. After checking the time, Ashley figured her lover had been sleeping long enough. Wake up groupie.

Stacy groans in her sleep, I'm sleepy. h She doesn't move, and keeps her eyes closed.

I love you, Stacy.

Stacy sighs and turns onto her back with a smile, I love you too, my rock n' roll goddess.

Ashley giggles, then looks to the door when somebody knocks on it. Stacy reluctantly sits up while Ashley goes to get the door. Lucifer is standing out in the hall. I'm looking for Angel, is he home? Ashley remains frozen by the open door, shocked that he would come here.

She slowly backs away from the door and looks to Stacy, Some man is looking for Angel.

Stacy quickly stands when Lucifer steps into the apartment. They make eye contact and stare at each other in silence. Lucifer breaks it and asks, Where's Angel?

He's at school, but he should be home soon because of the flood. Lucifer leaves without a word, knowing where to find his son.

The School

"We approach the end of the last match, and finally see who comes out on top to claim his lovely bride to be.

Angel sighs. I'm going to go crazy from all of this and I don't know what to do about it.

Mr. Heartly looks up from his work,"I wish you wouldn't let him get to you"

Angel looks at his teacher and thinks, I can always count on him to have something to say. Then he asks, gIf I'm the anti-Christ, wouldn't I not be the way I am today? My life wouldn't be this way because of the Law and I don't know what I would have been. I can't not think about it. I wish I could make all of this go away so I can move on, but I can't.

Mr. Heartly rises, and comes to sit in the desk next to Angel. That's your inner demon, but somehow you have to find a way to make peace with it.

I thought you were supposed to fight your demons, not make peace with them.

Mr. Heartly sighs. You need to become one with them in order to move on and do all the things that your demon prevented you from doing. Do you understand?

Angle turns to the window to think, but notices it stopped raining. I think I do. h He grabs his bag off the floor, I guess I'm going home now. I'll see you next week, bye. Angel goes through the empty school and stands in the sunlight. I see the light.

Angel's home

Angel got to his house soon after leaving school and is surprised to see his mom home with Ashley. "Hi guys, what are you doing here? I thought you had a date to sing tonight?

Angel's mom smiles and says, She did but cause of the flood it was put on hold. Someone was here looking for you."

"Really and who might that be?" Angel asked, putting his hands on his hips.

Another knock on the door, this time Angel answers it to see Lucifer there. What the hell are you doing here?

gYou broke my nose, and now I can't stop bleeding. What did you do to me?

Angel blankly stares at him for a few moments. That's what happens when you get a broken nose, dumb ass.

Lucifer turns red from anger, I'm Lucifer, this shall-

Angel cuts him off. "It happens to all of us. This is what it means to be human. If you don't like it, you can go talk to your best friend, you know, the one who made The Law.

Blood drips from Lucifer's face and Angel smirks. Bleeding again? Must be your time of the month. He slams the door and goes to his room. He sits on his bed and turns on the TV.

"Ladies and gentlemen the event has come to an end. The bride now belongs to Sam Brooks. She will now be left in his care, and thus the even is officially over. Next week, join us in London for the groom event.

"Thank god that's over with"Angel leaves the TV on for the news and goes to his compute to find his necklace is missing.

"Shit, where is it? h He looks in his room but could not find it and tries to remember the last time he had it. He takes out his cell phone and calls Mr. Heartly, who answers after a few rings.

"Hello, um sorry to call you but did I leave my necklace there?

Mr. Heartly looks around the classroom."Sorry, Angel, nothing like that." There was only one place for him to check, and that was The Garden.

He thanks Mr. Heartly then heads outside and gets on his bike, going to the Garden.

The Garden

It was time for the bride to be given to Sam Brooks, the nobleman and his guards were there to collect her, but it was taking longer then it should cause Lucifer was not there. Sebastian was trying to call him but was not getting him to answer his phone.

You still can't get him? Ciel asks.

Sebastian looks over at him, "Who knew he would freak out over his own blood."

The doors open and in came Sam Brooks with his guards, Have you been able to reach him yet?

Sebastian tries calling him again.

Just outside Angel puts his bike to the side and goes in through the back. He starts to check every room to see if his necklace was there. There was one room left, but he could hear voices coming from it.

"Great. I just want to get my damn necklace back and now I might have to deal with this shit again. Wonderful. h He shoves the door open with a sigh.

Sam Brooks was getting tired of waiting. Hey! Can I take her now or what?

Sebastian turns to look at him."You'll have to bear with it a little while longer. Our lord is not here and I am not permitted to preform such duties.

Don't talk down to me you-

Angel makes himself known and cuts Brooks off. Don't take it out on him. Take it out on my father.

Who the hell are you?

Ciel rolls his eyes. He just told you he was the lords son open your damn ears."

Sebastian chuckles and teases, you missed us so much that you came back.

Angel smiles, but says, "That, and I lost my necklace.

Sebastian and Ciel look at each other before Sebastian asks, I'll deal with Sam. Why don't you go help Angel?

Ciel looks at Angel, then shrugs. I suppose.

"Now then, Mr. Brooks why don't we get the papers signed and send you on your way?" Sebastian gives out a smile.

Do you know where it could be? Ciel goes to Angel and folds his arms over his chest.

"This is the only place left. I've checked everywhere else.

Ciel circles around Angel, not looking very hard. Is it true that you hit him?

Angel looks up at him for a second and seeing his eyes lock with his makes him blush and quickly check under the table. "Yeah, I did. Then he came to my house crying about how he's Lucifer and he doesn't bleed.

Ciel laughs and Angel does the same. Sebastian glances at the pair and smiles, not being able to recall the last time he heard Ciel laugh.

Sebastian finishes the paperwork. "Here you go, Mr. Brooks you are good to go. He hands the papers to Sam.

Thank god its over with. goodbye you two. h He snaps his fingers. Pick her up and take her to the car. Let's go!

The guards do just that and they leave in a hurry. Sebastian walks over to the others and tries to help.

Where the hell is it? h Angel asks himself while the other two watch.

"What does it look like? Ciel finally asked.

"Its a half heart and half pentagram. Sebastian goes over to the lost and found to see if it was put in there.

"I found it. Angel bangs his head on the table in his eagerness to stand. He holds his head when he comes out from under the table and Ciel walks over to him.

Ciel kisses the top of his head and pats his head. Angel blushes, and thanks them for the help. He takes his necklace from Sebastian and adds, you should tell your 'lord' to lighten up. He's such an ass.

They watch him leave then Sebastian comments, "you kissed him.

Ciel shrugs, but doesn't turn to Sebastian. Yeah. h He leaves Sebastian standing there.

Sebastian sighs and stares up at the ceiling. I guess we'll be going back to England until we're needed again. He catches up to Ciel and wraps his arms around him, pulling the small boy to his chest. What if he doesn't come back? Ciel looks up at Sebastian.

We'll have to wait and see.

Angel's home

Angel had just got done with putting his bike up, but he sees that nobody is home when he enters. He wonders for a moment if they had gone to the concert, but didn't dwell.

Angel goes to his room and puts his stuff on the floor, then gets on his computer. He takes his necklace apart and plugs the USB into his computer. It was filled with videos he had made, and he turns on his webcam to make another video. He quickly turns when his door opens, but it was only Ashley carrying a cake.

"Happy birthday Angel. Angel's mom placed the cake in front of him. In all the excitement, Angel had forgotten his own birthday.

"Thanks, you guys" he said with a smile. A real one. For once he was happy that someone remembered him. After cake, Angel unwraps his presents. One of them was a movie called Demon Butler, so they all sit on the couch to watch. In the end, Ashley points out. That movie was terrible. What demon becomes a butler then falls in love with his food. Angel shrugs, not thinking the movie was that bad as the credits start to roll.

?

Lucifer was sitting in a room, waiting for someone to show up. gHello Lucifer, how have you been these days?" Lucifer turns to look at the man who just came in the room.

"We need to talk about why I'm bleeding." The man sits down next to him.

"When I came up with the law, you agreed to it. You and your demons stopped taking souls, which you did, but the fact that you were an angel and take more than what any human could in pain, only demons and angels can harm one another unless a human manages to find one of the relics from the old times.

"That's what Angel did to me... I want this fixed! h God smiles.

"Then go to a doctor and let him fix it. h He stands and leaves Lucifer sitting alone in his chair.

The next day at Angel's home

Angel didn't wake up until noon. He got cleaned up forgetting that school was closed until he was already downstairs. He makes some lunch, then goes back upstairs to make the video he never made yesterday.

"Hi this is Angel and I want to talk about why is there a bride event. This has been going on for years now. They started by enslaving the people who rebelled against the system, but because slavery's over with and now they're taking away freewill. There's something called jail and prison for this is shit and no one does anything about it. They just smile and nod. Something needs to be done and my dear old, and I do mean old, dad still wants to hate me. I wish I hadn't been born, but I'm here, and I have been for 14 years. I'm not going anywhere. h He smiles at the camera then turns it off.

Angel stands and grabs his coat, walking through the house to find it empty.

"Mom, you there?" Angel looks at the table and sees a note.

"We went out, but we'll be back soon. Angel puts the note on the table again and goes out the door for a goes for a walk. He ends up going to the park, and brings his camera to record if he needs to. He was about half way there when he sees Sam Brooks and his guards go into a building. Without thinking, Angel walks over to one of the windows to see what was going on inside.

"Sir, are you sure we should do this here?" One of the guards asks.

Sam turns to look at the man. "Yes, the plane will be here soon and we can all go home, so its fine. I just can't wait. Why don't you guys just go watch the doors while me and my dear get to know each other better? h Sam shoves his bride to the ground while the guards move to the door. The girl tries kicking Sam when he starts taking her clothes off, but he pins her down and covers her mouth.

Angel is shocked by what he sees and turns on his camera to record what was happening. He asks himself what he's doing before he stops and looks around for anything he can use as a weapon. Angel doesn't find anything, and puts his camera down before trying to carefully get inside. The guards come towards him as soon as he does, but fail to see him. Angel hides and waits for them to pass by him before he goes to the room. The door is already open. He gets close and looks inside.

Would you hold still you bitch. Sam slaps his bride and pins her arms over her head with one hand.

Angel creeps into the room and closes the door back. He gets behind Sam and manages to wrestle him off of her. Sam quickly gets to his feet and glares at Angel. gYou're that kid from last night. What the hell do you want?

Leave her alone, she doesn't need to be treated like this. She is a person. h Angel tries to get between Sam and the girl. gShe's mine you fucking brat, go find your own. h Hearing the fight, the guards return to the room. Angel tackles Sam to the ground and starts hitting him. But he wasn't nearly as strong as Sam was, and once the guards pinned him down, Angel was quickly beaten to a bloody mess.

Sam's guards pull Angel up by his arms as Sam straightens his clothes before the boy. There aren't any heroes in this world kid, stop trying to be one. h Sam returns to his bride and sits on her waist, tightly holding her face in his hand. He leans forward and whispers in her ear. gthe poor kid came charging in here to save you. Now I'm going to have to kill him, but first. h His hand roams down her leg and his fingers catch on the hem of her dress. The woman whimpers when he stars pulling it higher. I think he should see your body before he goes.

Angel closes his eyes against the scene in front of him, feeling helpless. There wasn't anything he could do to save the woman, or himself for that matter. I can't do anything right. Mr. Heartly was wrong, I'm not going to do great things. Angel's nails dig into the palms of his hands when he balls his hands into fists. I wish I was stronger, if I did, then I could rip them apart. I hate this. I hate them. I hate this world. And...I hate him. I hate all of it!

A wave of strength passes through Angel when his eyes turn black, and he tosses the guards off of him as if they were nothing more than rag dolls. Sam turns from the woman he was torturing and releases he when seeing Angel having turned into a demon. I won her fair and square, she's mine. If you know whats good for you, you'll-

Angel's rage consumed him, and he didn't let Sam get another word out. His hand pierced through his rib cage, wrapping around his frantically beating heart. Your death will bring you freedom. I'll see you in hell.

He tosses Sam aside, and turns to the woman cowering at his feet. Angel offers her his clean hand, and helps her to her feet. She manages a weak smile. Thank you.

We should go before someone comes looking for him. He pulls his hood up and jams his hands into his pocket after grabbing his camera. I have an extra room you can stay in until you can get home, if you want it. The woman nods, and followed Angel back to his house. His mom wasn't back yet, so he didn't have to worry about explaining things right now, and takes the woman upstairs to the extra room.

You have it all to yourself. Bathroom's over there and if you need anything, my rooms next door. She follows Angel into the hall, when he drops his stuff off, and heads for the bathroom.

What are you?

Angel looks in the mirror and laughs. You're guess is as good as mine. This is the first time something like this has happened. He pauses and turns the water on. What's your name?

Mary. My family must be pretty worried about me. I'll see what I can do in the morning, but for now I'm going to go rest. Goodnight.

Mary goes to her room and leaves Angel in the bathroom. Once he finishes cleaning up, Angel goes to his room and drops onto the bed, suddenly feeling weak and light-headed.

The Garden

Lucifer finally returns from his meeting and heads for his room, getting lots of strange looks from the other demons as he went. With his nose healing slower than it should have, he had to keep a bandage on it to keep it from healing wrong. He turns to one fo the demons with a growl. gWhat the hell are you staring at?! h

The demon shies away and quickly passes him. Lucifer slams the door to his room and sits at his desk. He calls Sebastian with the intercom and starts packing his things for the return to England. Sebastian enters after knocking on the door. gHave everyone pack up. We're leaving as soon as possible. h

Sebastian bows, and leaves to tell everyone else to start packing as well. Lucifer wasn't very happy about it, but there wasn't anything he could do. Damn that Law. And damn that kid.


	6. three sides

Angel's Home

After collapsing onto his bed the day before, he didn't wake up until late that night. In the darkness of his room, he can make out the shapes of his computer and desk, along with a pile of clothes sitting on the floor nearby. The room spins when he force himself into a sitting position. his limbs felt like they were made of lead, the simple act left him feeling exhausted. With some effort he kick off his shoes and crawl under the blankets. Warmth caresses him as he close his eyes again, but try as he might, sleep remained an elusive temptress. The more he reaches for her, the farther away she grew. A frustrated sigh escapes him and he sit up again. It was easier this time, but he was far from feeling like his old self. This sucks.

He drops to the floor and wander into the kitchen, unable to ignore the dry, sticky feeling in his mouth. Maybe a snack wouldn't hurt either. he always slept better on a full stomach. Lacking the motivation, and patience, for anything that needed to be cooked, he made himself cereal instead. Once properly hydrated with food in his stomach, he started to feel considerably better, and lost the urge to go back to sleep. he knew he should have, it was almost midnight, and he didn't want to sleep all morning tomorrow.

After rinsing the bowl out, he circle around the living room and kitchen a few times. The thought of taking a workout briefly flickers in his mind, but he dismiss it as quickly as it had came. he heads back upstairs and drop into his bed again, leaving the light off. Sleep continues to evade him. For awhile he stares at the outline of his camera. I should delete that video. he didn't want to leave anymore evidence lying around than necessary. There was no way to tell if the police would actually come looking for him, but better safe than sorry. It was self defense, but how were you supposed to explain away managing to take down three grown men, two of which were nearly twice his size. Stuff like that just didn't happen.

In spite of that, he ended up watching it. he knew he shouldn't have. What was the point of watching something he had been through hours ago? The beginning was shaky, and out of focus, but once he had fixed the setting the quality was adjusted. There was only so much he could do with a digital camera, and most of the editing software he had gotten his hands on was way out of your league.

Through the cracked, dirty glass that had been covering the window, the camera had managed to pick everything in painstaking detail. It wobbles one more time as he adjust its place, then remains still as he charge inside. Brooks sends his guards away, leaving him struggling to pin down his unwilling bride. A lopsided sneer was plastered across his narrow face while Mary fought against him. A pause, then he creeps into the room, taking care to close the door behind him. Sam doesn't notice as you come up behind him and tackle him off of Mary after he hits her. He didn't have time to prepare, and falls to the side beneath his weight, but it doesn't take much for him to shove you off. You fall to the floor, he turns to the door and yells for his guards to come. Mary inches away from Sam while he try to get in-between them, her eyes wide with fear.

He tackles Sam as the guards come rushing into the room. Against all three of them he hadn't stood a chance. Phantom pains run through him at the sight of his form being beaten by Sam's guards. I even look weak, no wonder I can't do anything by myself. he sighs and start to close the camera, but stop when he sees himself turn. Why couldn't I have stayed like that? Brooks got what he deserved. There are others who should get worse. If only...

Angel could still feel his blood trickling down his arm. Warm. Seeping into his skin and staining it red. For a moment his life rested in the palm of his hand. With one flick of his wrist it was over. The light faded from his eyes as he fell to the ground. If he actually was human that would have been the end for him. he could hear his empty shell of a body still trying to repair itself moments later, but a missing heart wasn't as easy to fix as a shattered bone or ruptured organ. Knowing such a small muscle was as vital to them as it would be for a human was enlightening. Killing someone wasn't was bad as everyone made it out to be. Next time he wouldn't hesitate. He'd figure out how to flip the switch. Reach deep into that place hidden inside and put and let all that power run free again, even if it was only for a few fleeting moments.

~Ψ~

UK

The flight back was always the longest. Out of all of Ciel's travels through the decades, no place quite felt as much like home as England did. Call it sentimentality, but this would always be home. You were born and raised here. As time went on, you could still remember how it had been back in the 1800's. The buildings may have changed, along with the people, but you had every side alley and back street memorized.

Over the years Ciel's mansion had grown dustier, and more like a museum than it used to be. Assorted trinket, knickknacks and other things of that variety that accumulated over a life time crowded in shelves in abundance. There were only a few he was fond of, the rest were gifts from some of the higher ups that he couldn't quite get rid of. Most were tasteful, but others remained tucked away in a storeroom under a dusty sheet, only to be brought out when they stopped in for a visit. Several demons in his faction ended up keeping permanent residence here, but he weren't particularly close to any of them. he just happened to be stuck under the same roof as them. he had a greenhouse built over the rose garden and converted the stables to a garage, but aside from needing to be rewired about a hundred years ago, everything else remained the same.

he drops his bags by the door once in his room and flop down on the bed. Not requiring sleep didn't mean he didn't feel exhausted time from time. Such meetings always took a lot out of him. While it hadn't been as bad when he had to manage all of his companies, there wasn't as much politics involved in these things as one would think. It was mostly petty squabbles about things that had happened centuries ago. he hadn't even been alive for half the things they bitched about. Sebastian had to fill him in on most of it, but he could only listen to so many 'he stole my amulet so I burned his city down' before he stopped caring.

Sunlight poured in through the open window, warming his skin. he could have sworn he closed it before he left, but he couldn't be bothered to try to remember something so trivial. he wraps his arms around an overstuffed pillow with a content sigh and closed his eyes. Maybe I can take a nap before anyone misses me.

He was just starting to drift off when Sebastian creeps into Ciel's room and climbs into the bed next to him. He brushes Ciel's hair away from his face and kisses his temple. His skin was cold against Ciel's. "he always did enjoy sleeping on the job."

Ciel inches closer to him and buried his face in his chest. His whole body felt cold. What the hell was he doing now? he didn't dare ask. More often than not the answer ended up giving him a headache. Assuming he would answer his question. Every after all these years, Sebastian enjoyed playing keep away with information. "The windows not open."

Sebastian tenses under his hands, the sighs. Even now Sebastian still felt the need to take care of him. Ciel had proved himself capable more then once, but sometimes he still saw him as nothing more than a fragile child who he enjoyed putting in harms way. "Your making progress then." He kisses the top of Ciel's head, and buries his long fingers in his hair. "Are you coming to dinner?"

"Must I? I won't be missed."

"I'll miss you."

Ciel rolls his eyes. Speaking from experience, he knew Sebastian would have hardly acknowledged him all night. "Then you can stay up here with me. I refuse to participate in such ridiculous social conventions."

His hand moves to Ciel's waist. "You always say that."

"This time I mean it. That tournament was the worst I've seen since my creation and my presence will only endorse it happening again. Others aren't going either. They aren't going to celebrate this because it's not a victory." he brush Sebastian's hand away and sits up. "Things are only going to get worse form here, and you need to figure out where you stand."

Sebastian frowns and turns onto his back. He takes Ciel's hands in his, and kisses his knuckles, seeking a distraction where he would find none. "Must we talk about such things?"

He pulls his hands away and folded his arms over his chest. "You're the one who brought it up. Don't blame me."

He sighs, studying Ciel's face. "You're worried about him."

"I'm not."

"You're still a terrible liar."

Ciel looks away and starts to climb to the floor, but Sebastian hooks his arm around his waist and pulls him against his chest. "Let go." He doesn't. Sebastian could have the patience of a saint when the situation called for it. He wasn't going to budge anytime soon, and Ciel had no hope of prying him off with force. Compared to him he was a baby.

"He doesn't have the brains to rise to power even if he does turn. You and I both know that and there aren't many of those non-supporters who you mentioned that still follow the old ways. You trump card is less than a diamond in the rough. It'll take far more time than we have to turn him into the ruler he needs to be. He's a child. An ignorant and stubborn one at that." he remains silent, irritation pricking at the palms of his hands. You had already figured most of that out in far less words, but where there was a puppet in the place of a ruler, there was always somebody pulling the strings. As long as Ciel and Sebastian could do just that, getting things back to the way they should have been would have been easier than he made it sound. Angel was all those things, but if we put the right things in his head, a change was bound to come. He did have a claim to the throne, one law or no one law, that's how lineage worked. You wouldn't lie, it would have been thousands of times easier if it had been one of Lucifer's council next in line instead. They were split down the middle when it came to these things and even if he didn't want to admit, Lucifer would gladly rage war with the Angels once more. Our ranks had swelled to new heights since the decision was made. Far too many were itching for a taste of war once again. He's right about one thing, there's not enough time. But Angel's only going to get himself killed if he keeps this up.

Sebastian rubs his back in small circles and sighs. He had meant well, Ciel knew that, but sometimes his input was unnecessary. Sometimes Ciel doubted if he was actually going through with this despite all his hinting. He was always the sly cat who ate the canary. He smiles and gently adds, "He'd be more of a pain to teach than you were. And nowadays you aren't allowed to hit the children either. The nerve."

"Pain wouldn't help him learn. You'd simple anger him."

"He'd do it right just to spite me. You did at some point."

"Don't compare me to him. I'm one of the sharpest blades in your arsenal."

Sebastian smirks, and sits up, bringing his face inches from his. "You shouldn't speak so poorly of someone your so fond of."

He rolls his eyes. It was always annoying that he could read him so well. he just didn't know what exactly it was about it. he couldn't even claim it was because he reminded him of himself. Ciel never would have charged into things as blindly as he did. "You just did."

"I speak poorly of everyone. There are few who have proved themselves truly indispensable over the years." His hands move to his waist again.

"Am I one of those few?"

Sebastian smiles, placing a chaste kiss on his lips. "But of course." He kisses him again. "I keep you by my side don't I?"

he rolls his eyes. The opposite was true. It didn't matter how hard he tried to get rid of him, Sebastian always knew when and where to find him. Sometimes it felt like the contract had never been fulfilled. Ciel presses his face against the palm of his hand and rest his hand atop of his, leaning in for another kiss. Sebastian stops a hairs breath away. "Are you going to dinner?"

An irritated sigh escapes him and he pushes him away, standing. Must he always have an ulterior motive in moments like this? he could have sworn he got off on pissing his mate off. "No. Go by yourself. I'm getting a bottle of Bordeaux from the basement and I'm going to enjoy it alone."

He throws the door open and start down the hall, but Sebastian drags him back and pins him against the door. He cups his face in his hands and kisses him one last time. "I think I'll join you then."

He leaves him standing there. he knew full well he wouldn't. He never missed these things. Sebastian thrived on the chaos in such events. If anything he'd steal the bottle and go enjoy it while the rest of the council were poised at each others throats. Ciel sighed and head in the opposite direction, knowing full well he'd end up attending as well. Damn him.

~Ψ~

Angel's home

Angel wake up a lot earlier than expected the next morning to a quiet house. he lingers in bed a few moments, then throws back the blankets with a sigh. but he couldn't stay in bed all morning.

After wandering down the hall to see if his parents were home, which they were, he goes to the kitchen. Mary was already sitting at the table, flipping through the paper disinterestedly. She smiles when he stumble into the room, working his fingers through his hair. "Good morning."

"Uh, morning." he grabs a bowl out of the cabinet, and pour some cereal into it before joining her at the table. he glanced at the clock on the stove, and idly stirs his cereal. It was only eight thirty, how long had she been up?

Silence stubbornly clings to the house, one that couldn't be broken by the passing cars or his spoon clinking against the side of the bowl every so often. And there was nothing to fill it. There was nothing to say to her, and small talk did nothing in these situations.

Mary waits until he had rinsed his bowl out and put it in the drawing rack before getting down to business. "I made some calls while you were sleeping. My friends are going to meet me at a place not too far from here, and I'd be happy if you came with me."

She didn't waste any time, huh? he assumed it would have taken days for her to get in touch with her friends again. Then again, it did make sense for at least some of them to be here in the city with the tournament and all. They might have been planning something for when things were over to get her back, but Angel had taken care of that for them. he nods slowly, taking a bit longer to process everything. Why would they have wanted to talk to him? he didn't really have anything to offer them, he couldn't even say he was an ear on the inside since his father didn't want anything to do with him. "I'm more than happy to, but why?"

Mary leans back in the chair, pausing long enough to find the right words. "I'm not really the person to ask, I've been pretty out of it for awhile, but we think you could help. That is, if you want to."

"Of course I want to!"

Mary covers her mouth with her hand, trying to stifle her laughter. he smiles, and headed back upstairs to get dressed in his eagerness. For the first time he could actually do something that would make a difference, he didn't want to waste the chance. he spent a little longer than he would have liked in the bathroom. his hair didn't seem to fall in place the right way after he had washed it, but he bounded back downstairs with a new found excitement. With everything that was going on, he couldn't recall the last time he had felt so good. There was finally a silver lining in the clouds that seemed to be hanging over him.

Mary was still in the same chair at the dining room table, although she had put the milk away and washed her own dishes. She smiles again when he jumps down the last two steps. "Are you ready?"

He nods vigorously. "Where are we going?"

She stands, taking care to push the chair back in after doing so. he notice she had borrowed some clothes from the guest room, but he didn't comment on it. They were some of Ashley's clothes that had been sitting there since she moved in. he doubted she would miss them. Mary follows him to the door, and waits while he locks the door and tuck the key into his pocket before finally explaining. "A cafe I think. I never was any good at finding my way through cities. Mirabelle's?"

"I know where that is, we used to go there all the time."

"Lead the way then."

Mary follows him through the streets, more on edge that she was when he left. She stayed close to his side the bigger the crowds got, but soon enough they would thin out again. Unless there were other threats they faced, the demons had all gone back to the United Kingdom. Where they belonged. For now, the demons could be their problem.

Despite what he normally did, he stayed on the main streets as much as possible. Mary seemed more comfortable with that. Eventually he opened the door to Mirabelle's and followed her inside. Mary hesitated in the doorway, and checked the time on the clock hanging on the wall. There were a few other people inside, but none of them were who she was looking for, because she led the way to an empty table well away from the door.

The smell of chocolate and other sweet things drift through the air. The cashier glances over to where Angel and Mary were seated, but doesn't say anything about them not buying anything just yet. Although the fresh-baked muffins sitting in the display case were tempting. After his mom got busy, he stopped coming here. In fact, he had almost forgotten it existed. he had passed by it a few times, but the thought of going inside never crossed his mind. At least, not until now.

Mary leans forward in the chair, and folds her arms on the table in front of her. Her eyes sparkled with determination, and she wore a more genuine smile. There was no way to know, without asking at least, how long she had been held captive before the tournament. In a place like that the days must have felt more like months. Thinking about it made his skin crawl. For someone who wanted equal footing, the demons did some awful things. It was inhumane. "Not much longer now. He's always a little late."

She watched the people pass by expectantly. The minutes crawl by. Mary hunches her shoulder, unable to maintain her straight posture. She taps one of her nails on the table and sighs, glancing at the clock again. Her excitement waned. Angel shifts in the chair and rest his head on his upraised hand, starting to feel a strange mix of restlessness and exhaustion. Nearly half an hour had passed, and there the two still sat. What if he wasn't coming? Then what was he supposed to do? If Mary had known where they were going to be, she would have just went there instead, and this was a big city. Roaming around until he found them wasn't an option. Mary seemed to think the same thing, because she sighed and straightened, looking at the clock again before shoving away from the table. She opened her mouth to speak, then stopped short when the bell over the door chimed. She smiled instead and a tall man in a motorcycle jacket joined us.

He pulled Mary into a hug and kissed the top of her head fondly. "Nice seeing ya, kid." It felt more like they were friends that had life get in the way of things rather than the heartwarming reunion it was. He ruffles Mary's hair then releases her, and turns the third chair around to straddle it. He bounces his leg up and down while he talks, practically vibrating with energy. "I knew you'd find a way out." He gives Angel a once over and he do the same, although he didn't look like much. His dark hair was windswept, and it looked like he hadn't shaved or slept in a few days. His black jeans had rips in the knees and his matching work boots were scuffed to the point of being a dusty color. Just another guy he met on the street, but that must have been the point. If you're going to launch a rebellion, you didn't want to call too much attention to yourself until the time was right. He jerks his chin at Angel, but doesn't make any strides to include him in the discussion. "This the kid?"

Mary gives a pained smile, gently steering conversation. "Angel is the one I told you about, yes."

He rolls his eyes. "When you said young, you really meant it. Your what, 12?"

He frown and puffs his chest out a little, "I just turned fourteen."

His voice drips with sarcasm when he puts his hands up defensively, "excuse me big man. Fourteen." He skeptically arches an eyebrow at Mary, less than convinced that Angel would be useful. While he weren't exactly welcome in most of the affairs of the demons, he had no problem waltzing in whenever he felt like it, as long as Lucifer didn't find out he was there at least. And Sebastian seemed fond of him. A few harmless questions here and there could provide some insight. he may not have been what he was expecting, but Angel was going to make damned sure that he proved his usefulness. "Fourteen." He scoffs and stretches his long legs out in front of him. "What can I do with that? You can't even drive."

You glare at him, but Mary stops him from saying anything. "Age aside, Angel has a lot more to him than meets the eye."

"That isn't much."

Mary sharply exhales and for the time being her irritating friend keeps his mouth shut, although while she explained things he glanced at Angel out of the corner of his eye every so often. he were impressed with how much she actually knew. The demons must have talked a lot more amongst one another than he had thought. "As I was saying. While he may not be able to do much as far as infiltration goes right now, there are a few in Lucifer's inner circle that trust him. And, considering that Lucifer is his father, as much as he wants to, he can't entirely write Angel off. If everything goes as planned, he's the one who's going to be taking Lucifer's place when everything is said and done, but Lucifer won't get rid of him. Not yet anyway, Angel has too much potential. That alone, is why we need him. You need him, if he's ready."

He glances at him again, drumming his fingers on the table. He weighs his options for a long moment. "Potential can be unfulfilled. It'd be one thing if we had an actual in. The inner circle isn't as loyal as they seem to be. At the end of the day, they'd all bleed, and most have, to protect their precious leader. I don't need some half-baked prince tagging along because he has daddy issues. No offense."

Angel smile sarcastically, but abandon the idea of letting Mary handle everything. he refused to continued to let them discuss what he would or wouldn't be able to do as if he wasn't sitting right there. he was, and are more than able to stick up for himself. If he was going to convince this thug that he were of some use, he'd have to stand up for himself and prove he could. "Offense taken, because I don't have 'daddy issues' he means nothing to me. And I know for a fact that more than a few of the demons would be happy to see Lucifer get taken down too. I want to help. I'm supposed to. And I'm not just going to sit here and let somebody else do all the fighting. This isn't right, and if you don't let me help, then I'm going to do it myself."

Mary seems taken aback by Angel's bravado while the man laughs. he couldn't tell if he was trying to make fun of him, or was impressed. Either way, he continued to pretend he wasn't there. "Where do you find these guys? You really do pick up every stray you find?"

Mary smiles, a bit of color rising to her cheeks. "Actually, Angel found me. He helped me get out."

Angel nods in agreement, sitting straighter. While he didn't go into specifics then and there, for the first time he seemed impressed with the boy. All his doubts hadn't faded, but he could tell he held him in slightly higher regards now. A small amount of weight on his shoulders had lifted, and he knew Angel were taking steps in the right direction. Angel self doubts begins to fade and he starts to think that he actually can do something. he didn't have to sit back and watch anymore. The man stands abruptly, and stretches his arms over his head. "I need coffee, you want anything, Mare?"

Mary shakes her head and folds her arms on the table in front of her again. The man shrugs, then turns to Angel. "Looks like I'm stuck with you kid." He winks and starts walking towards the counter. "You can call me Tex."

~Ψ~

Warehouse

The detectives were skeptical, to say the least when they had gotten the call. It wasn't unusual for bodies to turn up in the warehouse district, it was a run down area rife with crime. Everything from drug deals to prostitution and whatever happened to feel in between on the given day happened there. What was unusual was the circumstances under which the victims had met their untimely demise. The city had finally started settling back into the routine of things with the tournament coming to a close. All the people that had flocked to the area were returning to where they had come from, and the amount of inane calls at three in the morning with noise complaints had dropped significantly. In all honesty, their lives hadn't changed that much since the demons decided to make themselves known. Detective Harris couldn't have cared less in all honesty. For the most part they remained overseas, far out of his jurisdiction, and he preferred it that way. However, his partner had always been a little too into the occult for Harris' liking, and was completely enamored with them. Harris had a keen way of blocking out and of his partner's useless ramblings, and preferred to keep it that way, But at least for now, he didn't have to hear 'a demon did it' for every petty theft and puzzling murder. For that, he counted his lucky stars.

Harris lingers outside the crime scene for a few moments, surveying the area while Williams wraps up his phone call with his wife. They were 'discussing' something, but it was hard to tell what since Williams always rolled over and took whatever she dealt out. It was a wonder they had lasted this long. A beat-up station wagon with a shattered window coast along, until the driver sees all the police cars and speeds up. Harris shakes his head, and removes his hat long enough to run his fingers through his oily hair. He knocks on the roof of the car, and comments, "sometime today, princess."

Williams cringes, but quickly ends the call and climbs out of the car, looking defeated. "My mother-in-law is coming for a visit."

Harris poorly disguises a cheeky smirk. He remembered those days, then him and his wife moved to the city and he didn't have to worry about handling his extended family until the holidays rolled around, assuming he wasn't working that is. Another officer approaches from the back of the warehouse, since the front door had been boarded up long ago, the rear was the only possible entrance point. The young officer quickly runs through the crime scene and the report the coroner had left. He looked quite shaken, and stammered often, refusing to return back inside with the detectives. They didn't make any less of him for it, even after all their years working law enforcement, the grisly ones always hit a little too close to home. How could it not? What kind of sick individual rips another human being apart?

Williams takes the extra minute to thank the officer, while Harris pulls on some latex gloves and enters the warehouse, keeping wary of where he walked. There were a few scattered droplets of blood here and there marked with numbers, but from what he had seen they ended there. The officers on the scene hadn't said anything about finding bloody clothes or rags anywhere, so the perp must have worn them out. Either there was a getaway car waiting, or perhaps the killer stashed them some place else. Either way, they would have to stay on the lookout, but Harris was doubtful the evidence would still be around. The bodies had been here for a couple days. While the warehouse served as protection from the elements, rats had gotten to them, and the killer had ample time to dispose of anything that could have incriminated them.

The smell of death that hung in the still air grows stronger as Harris approaches the first body. He crouches near the mostly dried pool of blood and lifts the brown-stained sheet. A medium-sized hole had been bored through the man's narrow chest. Bits of broken bone stuck to the outside of the wound, and he could make out a few broken bones inside as well. The man's chest had crumpled under the force he had been hit with, but it would be hard to figure out what sort of weapon had been used to cause such damage. There wasn't nearly enough splintering or bruising on the pale, blood-stained skin for the man to have been smashed open. Harris' brow furrows in concentration as Williams comes up behind him. He had his face covered with a handkerchief, but his eyes widened in recognition when he saw the victims face. "That's Samuel Brooks!"

Harris turns to Williams, hesitant to ask how he knew that. Even if he didn't Williams would have explained it to him anyway. "Who?"

Williams sighs, and waves the question off. "Samuel Brooks, he's the one who won the tournament." Harris recovers the body and stands. The only thing he knew about the damned thing was what they had played in recaps on the news, but even then, Harris had been avoiding such things for the duration of this event. Practical news had gotten lost in the hype of some gladiatorial battle. Even the latest Royal Wedding hadn't caused this much trouble. Williams didn't take the cue to drop the subject and started rambling, his excited ranting slicing through Harris' train of thought. "Of course, there's not much that can kill a demon. And exorcism doesn't do much besides send them back to their place in hell, even if they've managed to physically manifest themselves. Holy artifacts are the only way to go." His eyes widen as he realizes, "Maybe one of the others decided to take matters into their own hands after they lost. We should-

Harris cuts off his partner with a raised hand and sets off studying the other two bodies, or what was left of them. Their arms had been ripped clean out of their sockets. Other than the obvious, there wasn't any other visible wounds that he could see. One of them had some bruising around the neck, but it didn't look like it was nearly enough strangulation to kill a man of this size. What was most unsettling was the size of the bruises. They were too small to belong to a full grown man, and no sort of rope or cloth would have left clear finger impressions. What the hell could have done this?

For a fleeting instance, Harris entertained the thought that it had been one of the other demons, but since they had all fled the country, it would take some serious evidence against one of them to get them arrested overseas and sent back here for a trial. The demons had parliament in their back pocket. Without a murder weapon, small hands was nothing to go on. Practically irrelevant and almost as useless as Williams demon trivia.

Harris throws the sheets back on the bodies, and stands, pulling off his gloves and exiting the warehouse with Williams on his heels. "Did you find something?"

Harris ignores Williams and takes the coroners report from his partners hands. Even after nearly ten years on the force, Williams could hardly make heads or tails of them. It was a wonder he had managed to get to the rank of Detective. Harris skims the report, skipping over large portions until he found what he was looking for, but it made even less sense than before. Whoever had done this had to have been significantly shorter than Brooks to match the angle on the chest wound, that or a very tall man on his knees, but Harris remained skeptical of that option. He didn't want to completely rule it out yet, for the sake of logic, and disbelief. There evidence was there, in fragmented pieces, but it didn't make any sense to the veteran detective. It just wasn't possible. "Come on, Harris, don't leave me out in the cold."

Harris sighs and casts a wary glance to the sky. Simply thinking it didn't sit right with him, and he refused to give frustration to such a heinous thought without more proof. He shakes his head and returns to the car, dropping heavily into the drivers seat. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing."

Williams frowns and puts his seat belt on, picking up right from where he had left off, but Harris blocked him out, trapped in a spiraling torrent of his own thoughts and theories.

Gus Kinney:hello my beta reader is back my old one that is and now we are back to the way things were


	7. Did i do that?

Gus Kinney: Hello somethings i need to say if this story confusing cause i go from beta to beta tell and i will try to have it fixed i have my old beta back much love to all of you.

The coroner's report had left Detective Harris with far more questions than he could possibly have the answer to. The cause if death had been easy enough to pinpoint from the get go, but everything else remained up in the air. There was no motive, no murder weapon, or even any witnesses. Anyone who would have missed this Samuel Brooks was thousands of miles away. With no leads, or suspects, this case was dead in the water.

Detective Harris had been sitting in the situation room for several hours now, staring at the cluttered whiteboard filled with everything he knew about the case. There were dozens of photos taken at the crime scene, a few scattered notes written in the detectives messy scrawl and key unknowns. Williams had also taken the liberty to pin up a few newspaper clippings about the tournament, although Harris refused to take them with a grain of salt. To him, it didn't make sense for one of the other competitors to wait until after the tournament was over. The title has already been taken, and surely it would have been easy enough to stage an accident during such an event. No. There was still something else to it, Harris could feel it.

About half an hour ago Williams had come in to check on Harris, and indulge in his need to air several baseless theories and irrelevant insight. Harris grew frustrated in a few brief minutes and sent Williams to do 'anything that didn't involve talking to him'. But there was something Williams kept bringing up that was starting to get to Harris: where was this so-called runaway bride? There hadn't been any actual media coverage of her, and with dozens of missing persons reports being filed across the country every day, it might end up being more effort than it was worth to comb through all of them. There was no way to know when she had been taken, and all of this was assuming someone had bothered to file a report for her.

Harris rubs his face with his hands and lets out a frustrated sigh. He blinks hard a few times, fumbling for his long empty coffee mug with his right hand. His vision was blurring from starting too long, and his eyes were starting to burn. Harris works his fingers through his straggly hair after trying to drink air, and stands with a groan. Pain flares up in his lower back from having been hunched over for too long, and he could hardly walk until he was well down the hall. The flow of blood to his legs slowly returns to normal, banishing the initial feeling of pins and needles running through them.

Harris' wishes of a fresh pot of coffee waiting for him in the break room were granted. Unfortunately for him, Detective Williams was also waiting for him.

Harris groans inwardly as he shuffles into the break room, mentally preparing himself for whatever theories Williams might have concocted in his absence. He fills his mug with the steaming liquid, keeping his eyes fixed on Williams. It wasn't until after Harris had swallowed his first sip when Williams started running his mouth off a mile a minute. Harris nursed his coffee, tuning his counterpart out at the mere mention of an 'inside job'. More baseless accusations. Harris rests his weight against the counter, his eyes wandering around the room, but not lingering on any one thing in particular. What he really sought was a distraction, at least a fleeting momentary one. In another hour it would be noon, he briefly contemplates taking an early lunch, but his ears prick up when he hears Williams mention a task force. Had this Samuel Brooks really been that big of a deal? No. There had to be something more to it than that. A more probably option was the Chief wanting things done very by the book. The demons were starting to invade the government too. The last thing the department needed was false accusations of "purposeful neglect", they were doing bad enough as is.

When Williams finally stumbled to a stop, Harris drained his mug. "What's the task force for?"

Williams shrugs. "I don't know."

Harris suppresses a rising sigh and rests his mug on the counter for something to do. "Well who's going to be in it?"

Another shrug. Williams initial excitement starts to fade as he rubs the back of his neck. It wasn't as if someone had told him about it, he just happened to hear about it on his way here. He averts his eyes, from Harris' cold, judgmental stare, taking up a sudden interest in the cracking linoleum. "Sorry boss... But hey! There's going to be a meeting in a little while so maybe you'll find out then."

For a moment, Harris found the prospect of taking an early lunch to be more enticing. Large debriefings at the beginning of a case were less productive than they could have been, especially when paired with getting bogged down with things he already knew and mostly useless leads. But, like always, Harris would be in attendance. He respected his job far too much to start slacking off now.

Right on cue, one of their fellow officers pokes their head into the break room long enough to tell the detectives the meeting was starting soon. They left as soon as they showed up. Williams and Harris exchanged wary glanced. Harris fills his mug again with a sigh. Williams stands a stretches, bringing some life back into his cramped limbs.

The pair reluctantly leave the break room and head up the hall to the situation room which Harris had been in minutes before. Time seemed to have slowed to a crawl before the door had even been opened. Harris skims over the faces of the other officers that had been called into the meeting as well, then sighs to himself and thinks, let's get this over with.

Angel:

It was your first day back and school and you were already being subjected to a guest speaker, although from the sound of it, it was more of a lecture than a presentation. Whenever something big happened somebody from administration or central office always came in to have a talk with the students, this time the topic was safety. However, since you were far from the poster child of calling for help instead of getting involved, it all would have been lost on you. The way you looked at it, there wasn't always time to stop and wait for someone else to do the saving. You had done enough waiting in your life, you weren't patient enough to sit back and watch while witnessing something wrong playing out in front of you. The regret would have been stronger than any other potential moral obligation.

All morning your mind has been wandering, now was your chance to take a break with your thoughts instead of pretending to focus on a poorly explained reading from the textbook or some thrown together lab just to keep us busy. The sky was a bright blue and it was supposed to be a lot warmer than it had been in a while, school was the last place you wanted to be.

You had opened your tattered notebook to a blank page, but it was just for show. The pages for homework on the board still weren't written down and a test on pollution was the last thing on your mind. You wanted to be out there doing something to help people, not cramming for tests that wouldn't matter months from now. The chance to make a difference was just a hairsbreadth away, you could practically feel it, but heroism was a fickle and elusive creature on this day and age. It always seemed to be dancing just out of reach and warping reality into something it wasn't.

When a cop walks into the room, your heart drops, and you can feel your blood run cold. Was she here for you? There hadn't been anything on the news about Samuel's body being found, at least not that you had seen yet. The thought of the police not having found it brought you little comfort. It just didn't make sense. Nearly every week the cops got called out there for one thing or another. Had they just chosen not to release anything about it?

Mr. Gates was slow in calling the class to attention for something he deemed 'a waste of valuable class time'. The thought if it made you roll your eyes. If nonsense ramblings about the life cycles of whatever animal happened to tickle his fancy that day. Maybe if you spent more time on the curriculum and less time spouting off nonsense every class wouldn't be considered as valuable. "One of New York's finest is with us today for a brief presentation. I know you will all give her your attention and respect."

There was a weak spattering of claps, but the officer's smile never wavered and she speaks with a cheerful sing song lost on us. She must have been used to touring schools for the younger kids.

It hadn't occurred to you that she would be the one talking with you. You felt like an idiot, but it didn't stop your heart from pounding. You cast a wary glance at the people sitting around you, wondering if they had noticed your strange behavior. The boy in front of you had put his head down at the beginning if class and hadn't moved since, while the girl in front of him had been daydreaming out the window just as long. Thankfully the boy beside you had been too busy texting from behind his upraised book to care about what you were doing. Of course, why would they? It wasn't like you were close to any of them. They didn't pay you any mind and you did the same. They stopped trying to pick fights back in middle school. Of course, back then you hadn't been so easy to get a rise out of.

The muscles in your back slowly relax, and you take up your slouched posture once again, but remained very much alert. The minutes crawl by. You pick up your pen, click it a few times then start idly tapping it on the upper left hand corner of the page. You alternate between looking out the window, watching the clock and catching snippets of the officers presentation. Her rhetoric questions with obvious answers did nothing to get the class to participate. Eventually she accepted defeat, and rushed through the rest of her talk with bullet points and rushed explanations of broad subjects. But in the end it all still boiled down to calling the police if we saw something that didn't seem right. She was done with almost 20 minutes left in class, too much time to simply wait around, but not enough to really delve into anything to the extent she would have liked.

The same few kids clapped again when Mr. Gates looked up from the mound of papers he had been grading. He thanked her for her time. The door had hardly closed before he was telling you to take out your textbooks and turn to page 336. You had barely had time enough to take it out, meet alone find the right page before he started reading directly from the book. For a moment you scan the charts and several diagrams in the margins, but none of it really sinks in. Mr. Gates dry monotone soon fades into the background as the blue sky calls your name again. 18 more minutes...

Lucifer?

The tournament had gone off with far fewer hitches than one would have expected. Between the unloyal followers that were infiltrating the inner circle and all the vermin that was skulking around the city, it was becoming harder and harder to believe that anything would be left sacred anymore. At some fleeting points in time you had found yourself starting to agree with the opinions of some of the less patient comrades you were forced to take under your wing, but they were few and very far in between. You kept unwavering faith in your master. Everything he did came with a reason, even if it may not be apparent at first to the others. The scales of balance were tipping on both sides of this... arrangement. With a few strategic pushes here and there were all we would need to reduce this treaty a worthless pile of ash. At least, this was assuming none of the vermin did anything too rash. Or any of your comrades for that matter, if we didn't play our cards right we'd get ensnared in another war we are ill prepared for.

Word of Brooks death was slowly trickling through the grape vine, but it didn't upset you in the slightest. He was a pompous ass on the fast track to losing everything. In fact, this tournament was his last chance to prevent such a, thing from happening, but in the end, he met a more permanent fate. There were many others who were far, better suited for his position. For now, he was condemned to lay on a, metal slab until they finally burned his remains. It was almost heart wrenching. Almost.

Instead you would content yourself laying a trap for several of the rebels skulking around the city as if they were actually going to accomplish something. The only problem was your leak prize laying just out of reach. While you had, yet to receive the all clear to dispose of the little cretin, there was certainly a lot you could do in the meantime. It had been quite a while since you've had a, pet. A would be prince was a marvelous thing to brag about, and you knew just how to get him. In some aspects, he was like his father, at least when he was younger, reckless, hardheaded, and very rash. It was a simple matter of getting him to rush into something he couldn't handle, but in order for that to happen, you would first need to find out what he was capable of. Trying to plan to far ahead showed a lack of insight, and were often where many met their downfall. Toy also knew the perfect team to send on the job. Try as you might, the prospect of a rebellion has taken root in several of your men as well. It was better to nip the bud before a flower has a chance to bloom.

Angel:

Nearly two weeks had passed before Mary contacted you again, although it hadn't been through any method you assumed it would be. She was waiting outside the school gates with Tex in front of a beat up Honda. You look around the front green for a moment. Some kids were rushing from the front door to their buses or to catch rides. A few settled on the front steps of the school, playing games on their phone or simply watching the hustle bustle that came with the end of another school day. A crowd was forming around the bike racks, and it didn't look like it was going to break anytime soon, making you a little happier about resolving to walk this morning instead of taking your bike. You hoist your backpack higher on your shoulders and press on.

Mary smiled when she see your approaching, although she looked tired. Dark circles had formed under her eyes, and her hair was haphazardly pulled back in a pony tail in an attempt to tame the knotted strands of dark brown hair. Tex, on the other hand, was miles away from here. Something must have happened, the only problem was figuring out what. He must have trusted you to some degree to have even bothered coming to get you, but would it be enough? "Hey Angel, its been awhile."

"Yeah, it has." Tex continues to fidget with his keys from where he leaned against the hood of the car. He watched the street with no particular interest, but he looked tense. A few cars drove by, but you recognized them in passing from the student parking lot. "What's up?"

Her smile wavers and she looks to Tex. The muscles in his jaw tighten as he waves off the question with a flick of his hand. "That's actually why we're here. Are you busy? We can come back if-

The driver of a silver minivan lays on the horn before even coming to a full stop behind Tex's car. He whips around and glares are the driver, puffing out his chest in an attempt to seem bigger than he already was. Before he could do anything rash, Mary opens the back passenger door and let's you in the car, before climbing into the front seat beside Tex. "We can at least bring you home."

"I'm not busy." It takes a couple tries, but the seat belt finally clicks into place as Tex revs the engine a few times, glancing at the soccer mom in the van behind us. She taos the horn again and he does a burnout in his haste to leave the school, leaving a cloud of dust and the smell of burning rubber in his wake.

For the most part the ride was filled with a tense silence and the sound of the engine being pushed to the max. Several times Tex reluctantly pulled his foot off the gas when something under the hood started rattling. Occasionally Mary would remind him of stop signs and red lights, promoting Tex to slam on the brake and swear under his breath. By the fourth time you could feel your brain sloshing around inside you skull. How much farther were they going to take you anyway? It was a wonder you hadn't gotten pulled over already, you didn't feel like testing your luck today.

Eventually the silence began to be too much for Tex. He fiddled with the radio only to have every channel he try end up with white noise. Mary gently brushes his hand away, telling him to take a left. She changes the input and fiddles with a couple exposed wires hanging from the back of the radio. Soon enough she found the right position, because your eardrums were assaulted with an obnoxiously loud talk show in a language you didn't recognize. Mary turned it firm until it was droning on in the background, but every so often Tex would make a comment and let off the gas. Mary would nod, but it didn't seem like she was actually paying attention. Her eyes had been closed for the past fifteen minutes.

Tex finally drops his speed as he turns down a darkened street. He actually signals when turning into a dingy parking garage, and pulls up beside a canary yellow mustang. Tex waits for a few moments before finally killing the engine. Mary leans away from the window and stumbles out of the car. You follow her as she rolls out her shoulders. Tex mumbles something to Mary. "You sure?" He nods, staring out the windshield at the cracked concrete.

Mary sighs heavily and takes the keys from Tex's outstretched hand. She smiles to you again and together you slowly make your way to a rusting metal door beneath a spotlight. You adjust your backpack again, glancing around the strangely empty pa parking area. There was only one other car and a sleek black motorcycle. Both the motorcycle and the mustang seemed out of place in such a rundown environment. You mind instantly flashes to a drug lord or mafia, but you were extremely doubtful. You had only been watching too many late night crime movies.

Mary spends several moments struggling with the lock before managing to get the door open. It squeaks in protest as you warily step into a dimly lit stairwell. Off to the left sat an elevator, but the doors were dented and ajar. Just inside the small rectangle you could see the light of the elevator flickering. The sight of it sent a chill down your spine; it was as if something was lurking inside of it, waiting for you to come close. A wave of relief washes over you when Mary says it's unreliable and you were taking the stairs.

The journey upstairs was strangely long. Mary tried to fill the silence by asking about school, but it was a dead end topic. You didn't have much to say about it. Like most kids your age you were particularly fond of it, and found it boring most of the time. That, and it wasn't like you had a lot of friends.

Mary led the way down the hall of the fourth floor, and stopped outside apartment 405. She tried the knob, let out a frustrated groan, then tried several keys in the lock. You glance down the dimly lit and empty hallway. You could hear any signs of living from any where else. The whole building seemed to be abandoned. If this was some horror movie, about now would be when the lights blinked out and ghost made itself known.

Mary finally finds the right key and turns it in the lock, only for the door to refuse to budge. She kicks the door several times, yelling at whoever was inside. "Dammit it Nat, I told you we'd be gone an hour! Stop locking the door!"

There was nothing but a following silence. Nat either didn't hear her, which you found hard to believe, or refused to come to the door. For several moments you wait in silence before Mary kicks the door again, patting her pockets in search of something. She pulls her phone out of her back pocket as someone comes running down the hall. Several locks click out of place, then the person runs back down the hall as Mary shoves the door open. A door slams shut just as we enter.

The glow of a large TV was the only real light in the front of the large apartment. Mary leans heavily against the door after closing it and drops Tex's keys into the bowl. A small boy was sitting on the couch wearing a bulky white headset and spamming buttons on his controller. "Make yourself at home."

You nod but remain standing as she moves in front of the boy. He leans to the side, not seeming to see who was actually standing there. "Busy."

Mary pulls the headset off and glares at him, folding her arms over her chest. "Is it don't yet?"

The boy keeps pressing buttons, answering in as few syllables as possible. "Almost. Gotta mount and solder." He leans the other way, frowning when his characters gets shot at from behind.

Mary moves again. "You said you'd finish it before you started playing again."

"Break."

"If its almost done you don't take a break you finish it! Stop procrastinating. We need it now."

"After."

"Now."

"5 minutes." He shows no signs of moving, and Mary promptly turns to the TV stand and unplugs his controller. He ends up dying withing seconds. "You ruined my score! I spent hours trying to get this high!"

"Tough. You'll have to do it again."

He flops back on the couch, glancing at you out of the corner of his eyes without saying anything. Mary motions you down the hall, flicking on the light in the living room on her way by. The boy groans and you hear fabric rustling as he hides under the blanket that had been loosely wrapped around him.

A blow dryer turns on in one of the rooms, and something heavy falls to the floor followed by a deep voice swearing. Mary didn't seem to care much, as she knocks on the door. A moment of silence, then she opens the door and pokes her head in. "Sammy, you in here?"

Warm air wraps around you, carrying the scent of incense as you peek into the room from where you stood behind Mary. The light was tinted red from the thin curtains hanging over the window. Burgundy cloth that matches the wall hangs from the ceiling. Little ornaments ranging from miniature buddah statues all the way to touristy nick-knacks clutter every available surface, matching the photos lining the walls. A pile of clothes sits on the floor in front of the dresser, and there was a futon with a purple blanket folded on top of it in the opposite corner just under the window.

It was a sort of organized clutter that made you want to wander around and look at everything, but you remain in the doorway. You weren't sure how 'Sammy' world react to you wandering into her room unwelcome. Mary was about to close the door when one of the cloths near the closet started to move. A tall girl rolled out of it, running her fingers through her long, black hair as she struggled to her feet. She appeared to be in the same condition as Mary, if not worse.

She studies you for a moment, then smirks, taking a few loping steps forward. "Your a lot smaller than I thought you'd be. Maybe its a half-demon thing." She raises her hand and wiggles her fingers as if casting a spell. The thin metal bracelets in assorted colors covering her wrists clank together, as if she was trying to cast some sort of a spell. Although the effect was lost when she started giggling. Dark makeup was smudged all around her eyes, making her look a lot like a panda.

You frown and fold your arms over your chest. You weren't that short, although compared to her, anybody would have been small. She was nearly a foot taller than you were. "I'm not done growing yet!"

She waves the claim off and leans against her dresser, taking a moment to rotate one of her statues a small margin to the right, "that's what they all say."

Mary backs out of the doorway and nudges you into the room. "Sam will fill you in on what's going on. I'll be back in a bit." She looks to Sam and adds, "make sure he doesn't lock the door again."

Sam salutes, "will do, my captain."

Mary rolls her eyes, but manages a smile and reassures you that she wouldn't be gone long. You didn't need it. Sam seemed nice, and harmless enough. What damage could she possibly do while she was gone? Unless there was something she was hiding.

Sam bows, a large sweeping gesture. "Make yourself at home." You drop your bag in the floor near the door, it was starting to feel strange carrying it around, and it wasn't like there was anything valuable inside. If someone was that desperate for some low-quality notes they could have them.

You sit on the teal cushion situated near a low sitting table and Sam sits across from you, neatly tucking her legs beneath her while she searches for a place to begin. "About a week ago I got some tip that a couple of the local were holding a little get together. It was supposed to be a strictly information gathering thing. I was gonna sneak in and Princess was gonna cover me from the roof across the way. Usual stuff." She stumbles to a stop when pop music starts blasting from the other room, earning a violent reaction from Sam. You may not have been fond of it yourself, but it certainly didn't send you into a rage. Sam jumps to her feet and pounds on the wall a few times, nearly toppling over a few figurines in the process. "Turn it down or I'll make you turn it down."

A moments pause. Then the music is reduced to a background drone with a bang on the wall from whoever was in the adjoining room. Sam rolls her eyes and wanders around the room while she talks. "Of course, Teeter had to stick his nose in it before Tex could give the all clear and went charging in there with..." She counts on her fingers and drops onto the cushion again. He constant up and down was starting to make you restless. You straighten your legs in front of you and plant your hands on the thick carpet behind you. "I don't know. It was about half his gang but those guys are always coming and going. 'Course, he gets himself captured and now we gotta go get him. Tex said he wasn't going to, because he's always doing stupid stuff. I knew he was lying from day one. He wants Teeter back just so he can kick his ass, of course I would too, dumb ass is gonna get himself killed at this rate."

The pop music slowly creeps up in volume to drown out Nat using power tools in the the kitchen. Although Sam seemed to prefer the high-pitched whine of a drill than Taylor Swift. "I'll be right back."

She charge out of the room and you can hear the wood splinter as she tackles the door to the next room open. Something heavy falls to the floor. There's a lot of thudding around and the wall shakes before a deep voice starts begging for her to let go. "Then keep that shit off. Nobody wants to listen to it."

A silence follows, then Sam returns with a cheery smile as if nothing had happened. Moments later the young man she had just assaulted folded himself against the door frame, although it took you a couple seconds to process he wasn't a girl. He was wearing a ton of make-up and his dark hair was almost as long as Sam's. He idly twirls strands of his hair around his index finger while studying you with a disinterest. "Do you think I should cut it again?"

Sam huffs, and flood backwards on the floor, draping an arm over her face. "Does it look like I care, princess."

His blue eyes narrow and he puffs out his chest. "I might have to, or dye it at least, then I'll start looking like you. It might scare off my following."

Sam picks her head up and glares at him, but he changes the subject before she can move. "I'm taking the bike, so you can babysit your little friend here."

"What? No fair, you got it last time!"

"Maybe if you didn't just break my speaker I would switch with you."

He disappears back down the hall and Sam pouts, muttering to herself. "It was my idea in the first place. He only bought the fucking thing so I could have it."

"Tell Mary it's done and I'm not fixing it again if you idiots break it." Nat falls quiet after that and turns the lights off as Mary returns, having heard his comment.

Sam stands and heads into the living room, you trail along behind her add she starts begging Mary to let her take the bike. 'Princess' comes flying out of his room, the hilt of a knife was sticking out of his knee high boots and you could see a gun peeking out of his waist band. You wanted to believe he was just over prepared, but you had no real idea what you were getting yourself into. For the first time you realize just how much danger you were putting yourself in, but it was exciting. The palms of your hands tingle in anticipation. This is it. This is really it. "She's not driving my bike! She scratched it last time!"

"You painted my car yellow!"

"It looks better than orchid!"

Tex enters behind Mary, bringing the arguing pair to a grinding halt. He looks at Nat, who was back to playing his game and ignoring every one else, then to the little rover sitting on the kitchen table, then to Sam and 'Princess'. "Nobody's taking the bike."

"Hah. Tough luck, Princess."

"That's not my name!" He elbows Sam, or tries to. She side steps him and sticks her tongue out. Before the could start arguing again, Tex announces, "Prince is driving, and your taking Angel and Sam to secure Tweety."

Prince frowns, snapping his holster into place. "I don't do kids."

"I'm fourteen!"

Prince's eyes widen and he brushes back some of his hair. "Yikes." Sam takes a swipe at him, but he backs away and heads back down the hall. "Neither one if you are sitting in the front seat."

You were particularly upset about him. The strange mix of cologne and perfume he wore would have given you a headache. That and you would have rather sat next to Sam. Tex takes Prince in stride, calling after him, "you have 20 minutes."

"30."

He looks to Nat before going over to the rover. It was like he was a whole new person. His prior anger had burned away and left an unwavering spark of determination, although you were under the impression that it was more for striking a blow at the demons and less about rescuing Teeter.

"Nat you gonna drive this?"

No response. Tex suggests he take command of it suggestively but Nat still remains frozen in place, rapidly pressing buttons on his controller and gazing at the screen with a predatory focus. Tex sighs, and texts him instead.

Whatever he sends to him does the trick because Nat practically launches himself off the couch to snatch the controller for the rover from Tex. "Your not putting you hands on anything I make ever again."

"Come on-

"Don't you 'come of natty' me! I could have topped my ranking again if it wasn't for this stupid thing."

Tex smirks and ruffles Nats hair, much to his displeasure, "but you love this stuff."

"No. I build. Not fix. There's a difference. And you didn't even get enough tin. There's a hole in the bottom. I hope something slices through the wires."

"Don't be mean."

Nat ignores him and takes care to hide the controller before sitting back on the couch with his game. Tex carefully picks up the rover and slips it into a large bag before handing it to Mary. He glances around the apartment, pats his pockets then grabs a different set of keys off the table. He finally turns to you with a smile. "You ready kid? Your in the big leagues now. Although if you can put up with our resident prima Donna for more than five minutes its mostly downhill from there. Prince opens the door to his room, long enough to make it known that he had heard Tex talking about him. Poo music starts blaring obnoxiously loud again. Sam's eyes narrow and flick towards the hall, but she stayed on as good of a behavior as she could since Tex was around. "He's a prissy little princess that needs to get his way."

Prince opens the door again, it was scary that he had managed to hear her. "And she's an unladylike gypsy with man hands."

Tex ushers Mary to the door and she rushed out a 'good luck and be safe' before it closed again. You wander through the kitchen and back to the entry way, but it wasn't enough to quell your urge to do something. You felt energized. You were ready to take on the world. Sam noticed, because she grabbed the keyring with a hello kitty charm attached to it and motioned you out into the hall and down the stairwell. "This'll really get him going "

She was right. You had barely made it two floors before Prince came charging down the stairs in search of the keys. He practically tackles Sam into the wall in his haste to get them, then pair wrestle each other to the floor and you had just enough time to back away yo avoid getting caught up in the mess. Were these two really going to make it through the night? You hoped so. You planned on sticking close to Sam to learn the ropes of this operation, but you couldn't so that of she was out before she was even in. Prince sits up suddenly keeping the keyring in his mouth while he adjusts the claw clip in his hair while glaring at Sam. "Tom boy."

"Girly girl."

The car ride to the outskirts of town was painfully long. Prince and Sam argued the whole time and more than once he pulled over just to try and smack her. She bit his arm the first time, he pulled her hair the next. It was a constant back and forth between them. It was like they were very dysfunctional siblings. You had been forgotten shortly after pulling out of the parking garage. Prince still didn't seem to be over Tex and Mary borrowing his bike either.

When we were close you caught Prince glance at you in the rear view mirror, but he didn't say anything. Him and Sam and been quiet for quite some time, but the peace was shattered when he nearly flew by the meeting place. "Lead-foot."

"Nomad." He drifts through a U-turn, sending up a cloud of dust. Pieces if gravel bounce off the side of the car as he races back towards the motorcycle and comes to an abrupt stop behind a long abandoned building. "Your buying me new brakes."

"I'll buy you brakes when you fix my speaker."

"I'm not fixing shit." They scramble out the car and lunge for each other again, only to have Tex forcible drag both of them apart. Sam tosses her hair back, trying to play it cool while Prince looks more like a kicked puppy. "I would greatly appreciate it, if you two didn't kill each other now."

You stumble out of the car and join them glancing around but seeing no signs of life. was this some joke? And where was Mary? Tex releases Sam and Prince. They promptly back away from each other and Prince runs his fingers through his hair as if someone would care that it was out if place. His makeup was already smudged here and there from trying to go after Sam.

Tex leads the way to the side of the closest building, compared to them, you were painfully aware of how loud your footsteps were against the gravel. Tex glances around the corner as if he might have seen something. "Prince your going around back when Nat brings R-4 back. Angel and Sam, your going to wait then follow Prince but head up the fire escape and come in front the loft. Marys covering you from the roof, and that's when I'll go in from the front. Prince you send Tweety ahead to clear the room and send his guys packing. Got it?"

Prince twirls more of his hair tactfully avoiding the subject. "What?"

"He owes me money... Send the hoodlums in first."

Text rubs his face with his hands and glances to the roof. Mary either didn't hear or was choosing to ignore them. "Everyone owes you money."

"That's because people like owing me things."

Tex ignores him and firmly repeats. "Tweety goes in. Hoodlums out."

"But-

"Tweety in."

Princes let's out an irritated groan and peels away from the wall. The rover had hardly reached cover when he was already sauntering across the open space as if he owned it. It was a wonder he didn't get spotter. A few empty unmarked vans sat just outside the warehouse, but even with darkness fast approaching there weren't any light on inside. Were they really here? Something about this whole thing felt wrong.

Tex checked his phone, furrowed his brow when reading a fairly long text, and decided to send Sam and I in to back up Prince. She didn't question it, and led you through a less direct route along the buildings. "Are you ready?"

You nod, unable to find the words to speak. Your heart felt like it was going to burst from your chest at any moment, and you could barely control your shaking hands. Sam peeks thought the open door, starting as several shots were fired inside then silence. You both wait, straining your ears for anything. But there was none. The lights flicker on one by one, but through the crack in the door you see nothing. Prince must have been further in. Sam nudges the door open and motions for you to follow. Together you cover the first portion. More shots are fired, farther away this time. Sam growls, fiddling with the lock on a door. Something heavy slams into the door from the other side. The metal groans in protests and Sam jumps away from the door, frozen with her hand wrapped around her knife. Seconds crawl by. It happens again. And again. Then there's a long silence, whatever's on the the other side unlocks the door and kicks it open, Sam relaxes and glares at the firey red-head standing in front of her. He smiles and rubs the back of his neck. "Bout time you showed up. 'Ad the little missus come and save me didja?"

Prince comes up behind him and kicks his leg out from under him then storms through to the next room without waiting to see what was in there. The red-head quickly scampers after him, dragging his broadsword on the ground. Sam glances down into the lower hold, but the lack of light made it hard to see anything. You didn't hear anything either but that didn't meant there could be somebody waiting down there. It was too quiet. What the hell was prince shooting at? More shots, the Prince swears. Sam drags herself away from her thoughts and leads you to the door he had disappeared through. tex came charging in through the front door as you entered from the rear. Glass broke and a bullet flew past your head. You duck behind some ancient wooden pallets without thinking. If this was a gun fight you wouldn't last long. Sam pressed in beside you as another window shattered. A few of the demons went down, but not nearly enough. There were just to many. Prince was the first to go down, he slashes at one of them when a slender girl about half his size rushed him from behind and slammed him onto the ground with inhuman strength. You could hear a few bones snap, and he lay on the ground stunned. The shallow rise and fall of his chest was the only sign that be was still alive. You and Sam rush the first one that means your hiding place and manage to hold him still long enough for mary to pick him off. He had been solid. You arm ached from the impact a few punches had made. It was like hitting a brick wall instead of a person.

Teeter clips one on the back swing, throwing off his entire center of gravity when he tries striking the death blow that had put prince out of commission. The girl grabs his sword in both hands. Blood trickles down the polishes metal from her fingertips, but the pains doesn't get to her, she jumps, wrenching the sword from his fingers and sending him stumbling backwards. He doesn't fall, and throws several punches, missing all of them. She was too fast.

Another one comes for you, you hit him a few times in the stomach, each time you made contact you felt a little more of your strength fading. This wasn't like last time. There was something strange going on here, and you had no idea what. He pins you against his chest and wraps one of his free arms around your throat. You struggle against him. Digging your nails into his skin. You feel his blood well up beneath you finger tips while trying to not burn through what little air was left on your lungs. It burned. You kicked and tried to break free but he wouldn't budge. Black spots danced in your vision, threatening to over take your consciousness. They grew larger and larger but there was nothing you could do to break free. Your mind was turning into a sea of jumbled thoughts and fragmented sensations. You couldn't die here. Not like this. This wasn't how it was supposed to be...

The darkness that had overcome you have way to a brilliant light. Your limbs felt weighed down, something as simple as standing up was too much of an effort, but you did anyway and you swam back into reality. It was like you had been swimming for a long time, and now back on dry land supporting your own weight again was too much. Everything was red now, instead of the terrible black it had been. Your hands were covered in blood and so was most of the floor. It was even splattered on the walls. Sam was crouched against the wall opposite of you, her eyes wide with fear. Teeter was crouched on the floor with Tex near Prince. He kept weakly batting their hands away, looking to where you now stood.

You shook you head a few times. Mary comes rushing into the building with a first aid kit, not that there was much she could do on her own. He needed a hospital. You stumble towards them, faintly aware of Sam joining at a distance. Prince nearly falls to the floor again after Tex and Teeter finally get him to stand up, but he smacks Tex's arm away and glares at you. He tries walking on his own, but can't. Teeter takes him into his arms and whispers something to Tex before slowly carrying him out, with Mary hot on their trail. Only you, Sam and Tex remain, until Tex sends he out with the others. "Keep an eye on those two."

Sam nods weakly, her previous spark having dwindled down to nothing. You look around the empty room, unable to put two and two together. Everything was right in front of you, obvious enough and yet, it didn't click. Not even after you asked out loud. "Did I do this?"

Tex glances around, neither confirming nor denying your claim. Instead he shrugs his coat off and drapes it around your shoulders. "Let's get you cleaned up first." He guides you out through the back entrance. Night had fallen while you were inside, bringing with it an unwelcome chill to the air. Tex paused in front of Princes motorcycle and hands you the extra helmet Mary had been using. It was a little big, but not entirely uncomfortable. You climb onto the seat behind him as he starts it revving the engine several times for effect. "Don't tell you parents."

You quickly shake your head, wrapping your arms around him as he slowly turns around in the wide parking lot. "I wouldn't dream of it".


	8. Going back

Chapter Eight

Ciel

Ciel! Alois' footsteps pound against the floor in time with your throbbing head. Never again, you vowed. Never again would you subject yourself to a gathering of your elders. This always happened. Officially you were still nothing more than Sebastian's assistant (when put plainly) there was no reason for you to even attend such things. That and you had no real interest in ascending the ranks. You'd have to attend to your own responsibilities, plus those Sebastian pawned off onto you. There were not enough hours in the day, or casks of wine in the cellar, for such things. If you had to listen to everyone griping about the fall of Babylon one more time, you being grossly intoxicated would be the least of Sebastian's problems. You weren't old enough, or nostalgic enough, to care. Babylon didn't even sound that great from what you had read. Why the circle spent so much time complaining about it was beyond you.

Why now? Doesn't he have someone else he can pester? All through out the tournament preparations, the actual event, and the subsequent gatherings that followed, you had neither seen, or heard, hide nor hair of Alois or Claude. Now that everything was said and done, they decided to crawl out of whatever rock they had been hiding beneath. You didn't like this. In general you detested both of them, but when they showed up out of the blue like this, you found yourself especially suspicious. They were up to something, but you were too incapacitated to even want to try to figure it out.

The door to your bedroom bursts open and slams against the opposite wall when Alois barges in. You heard the plaster crack from the force, and wouldn't have been surprised if you found a hole in the wall from the brass knob. Great. One more headache to deal with.

You lie as still as possible, hoping Alois was feeling fickle enough to get bored and leave you. You had no such luck. In these situations you never did. You could only hope Sebastian wasn't feeling vindictive and came to your rescue sooner than later. Ciel you naughty boy, I should have known you'd still be in bed. You practically heard him pout as he lingered beside your bed. The seconds passed, then he latched onto your arm. You flinch, trying to pry him off as he drags you from the bed.

Alois, release me at once.

Hmmm...'kay. Alois drops you onto the floor, a coy smirk plastered across his face. You vision blurred from the impact of hitting the ground. Black spots dance in your vision as you cradle your head in your hands. You take a few, deep breaths and rub circles into your temples. We have work to do, stop slacking off. He giggles, bounding over to the window to open the thick curtains.

You wince in the bright light, shielding your eyes with your hand. Wait we? Alois there is no we, I have made this very clear.

Alois glares down at you. His icy blue eyes narrow slightly while he talks, sending a chill through you. How many times had you been subjected to such a look for things to end up poorly in your favor. Don't be rude. We came all this way to see you. Did you really think I'd be turned away so easily? Alois crouches in front of you. He rests one of his arms on his knee, and uses a hand to prop his head up while he gives you a halfhearted once over. His eyes lingered on your mouth lounger than you would have liked, although you always hated when he did that. It was as if he was trying his damnedest to take a peek inside of you. The malice was gone from his eyes now, he just seemed bored with the outcome of your current state. You really do look like shit. You were much cuter last time I saw you; Sebastian must be teaching you bad habits. He spat out Sebastian's name as if it left a bad taste in his mouth, although not without good reason you supposed. Sebastian disliked him more than you did. You slap his hand away when he reaches for your face, and try to summon the strength to stand. Alois' eyes cloud over slightly, as he watches you gather your legs beneath you, and brace yourself against the bed. You really would be better off with us.

Alois spoke quietly, almost to himself. When would he let you go? It had been nearly two hundred years. If you hadn't gave in to his pestering then, what made him think you would run to him now?

Alois tenses when Sebastian appears in the doorway, and stands. Sebastian ignores Claude, who had been lingering in the doorway this whole time, bypasses Alois, and draws the curtains shut again. A little of the pain in your eyes subsides, and you manage to pull yourself to your feet. Your legs felt like jelly, threatening to give out on you at any given moment. You rest as much of your weight as possible on the bed. I thought I told you to refrain from touching my young master.

This time you did roll your eyes, despite the pain it sent shooting through your head. Sebastian only said such things when he was trying to show off. Eventually Alois was going to see through him, but today was not that day. Alois plants his hands on his hips, stubbornly retorting, You don't own Ciel. I'll do as I please. You don't scare me.

Despite his brave words, Alois took a small step back when Sebastian advanced. From where I stand, neither do you. Now state your business or cease trespassing upon private property.

Private property my ass. The door wasn't even locked this time. Your getting forgetful in your old age, Sebastian. Claude poorly hides a smile from where he moved to close the door, then leans against it. Sure enough, there was a hole in the wall. We're helping you usurp the throne of course.

Claude's ghost of a smile quickly fades and he pulls out a purple handkerchief to polish his already spotless glasses. Sebastian frowns, coming to stand in between you and Alois. There mere suggestion of such a thing is treason.

Alois mimics his pose, although he was much too small to be intimidating. Then perhaps we shall report the pair of you. I think it's high time Claude and I had out turn in command.

Sebastian doesn't perceive it as much of a threat. It'll be your word against mine, and you both know just how popular you are.

Alois smirks, bounding over to Claude to drag him away from the door. Claude follows Alois for arguments sake, replacing his glasses and handkerchief in their proper places. Alois keeps his hands wrapped around Claude's arm. Sebastian, you should know better than anyone that we have eyes everywhere. Unless you want to continue playing dumb.

Alois rubs his face on Claude's arm while Sebastian tries lecturing him. I am not playing anything. You will have to take this up with someone else, assuming you don't get yourselves killed before you find what your looking for.

Alois turns slowly, but with a purpose, making a show of slipping his hand into Claude's. You should take better care of your flowers they look very wilted.

Sebastian frowns, his eyes darkening as Alois rests his hand on the doorknob. I'll have you know, that I bought all of these myself. I know the games you two play, and you shall not play them here.

Alois opens the door a crack, tilting his head to the side. Are your really sure? If I recall correctly there's a bouquet of pink lilies sitting in the dining room that your forgetting about. In Sebastian's following silence, Alois starts towing Claude into the hallway, saying in a cheerful sing-song, But Sebastian doesn't believe us, does he Claude?

I suppose not.

Sebastian remained tense in front of you, then sighs and asks Alois to return. He could have been serious? Sebastian. He didn't turn to you, only folded his arms over his chest as Alois came skipping back into the room . Too slow. I almost wouldn't have turned around.

What do you want?

I already told you. We want in.

That's all.

Sebastian your trying to be something you don't have. If you don't be careful you'll get your hand cut off. Alois seemed like he would have been more than happy to be the one to do it. A chill runs through you at the thought of it. He'd have to do it over your dead body. That was the only way you'd let him lay hands on Sebastian. Your fall from grace will be quite farther than Lucifer's. Considering all the things he lets you get away with.

Sebastian meets Alois coy smirk with a blood-chilling glare. His eyes turn pink as he sizes up his pint-sized opponent. But contrary to that he gives in. Damned if he did, damned if he didn't, or at least that's how he saw it. You weren't sure what you thought. Of course neither one of you had been expecting them to show themselves anytime soon. They showed up at the heart of chaos to cause more destruction than imaginable, then disappear again without a trace until more trouble showed itself. They must have been quite bored without their human toys if they had fallen so far as to come to you for help... or wanting to help. It wasn't in either one of their natures. Fine. Go to the States and keep an ear out for what the humans are planning, since that's the only thing your good at. We can't let them continue to thin our ranks at a time like this, even if it's only the undesirables. Eventually they work their way up to someone important.

Alois claps his hands together in excitement. I knew you wouldn't say no to me Sebastian. I'll see what I can do. He grabs your phone from the nightstand with a bright smile. You reach for him as an afterthought while he rummages through your phone.

Give it back!

Alois waves you off, wandering out of your reach as he tapped away, before placing it back in your waiting hands with a wink. I'll call you. Claude turned, leaving Alois sauntering out of the room. Or you can call me.

I won't.

He pokes his head back into the room and frowns, Ciel your always so mean to me. One of these days your going to miss me while I'm away.

You wrap your arms around Sebastian and bury your face in his back, trying to block out his voice. I won't. He calls after Claude, and you wait while they make their way through your house. Alois babbled on about a shopping trip they needed to make until the front door opened, and finally closed.

You sigh loudly and crawl back into bed, building up a wall of pillows and blankets around you. Sebastian, go make me coffee.

I think your forgetting something.

Now.

Angel

When you came out of the bathroom again the apartment had different feel than before. It was no longer a bustling hive of activity, but a suffocating and empty space. The only sound came from Nat playing his games in the living room, and even then, it wasn't nearly enough to fill the emptiness. The little street traffic there had been before had died and it wasn't like there was anyone wandering around this part of town at this hour.

You follow the glow of the TV down the darkened hallway, until your were standing at the edge of the living room. Nat had pulled the curtain back while you were away, but there wasn't any light to be let in from in. The building next door blocked the view of the street and the street lamps. He didn't look away from the TV, or even pull off his headphones, but he managed to feel you standing there, looking between him, and the shooting game he was playing. It looked like the same one Mary had shut off on his earlier. Tex is at the hospital. You can use my phone if you gotta call your parents. Or whatever. Ha pauses and rises to his knees as a mob of zombies swarms him. At first you thought he might have forgotten you, but after he slaughtered them he dropped back onto the couch and continued as if he had never stopped talking. Food's in the kitchen. Help yourself. You'll go home in the morning. That's most of it. I stopped paying attention after that. They just talk and talk.

Nat had this calm, monotonous way of speaking. Even when he was obviously annoyed he didn't show it. It was kind of spooky. It did nothing to calm you however. Food was the last thing on your mind and your parents weren't even home to notice you had gone. Is he okay?

Who?

His brow furrows slightly, but you mistook it for concern at first. Prince.

He scoffs, leaning against the back of the couch. Don't know or care.

A sigh builds in your chest as you sit on the floor in front of the couch. It felt wrong to sit next to Nat, almost as if you would be invading his lair if you did. You had never lost time before. When combined with coming out of it covered in blood, you were more than a little shaken. You knew as much that you hadn't been the one who landed him in the hospital, but you couldn't forget the way he had been looking at you. Like you were some sort of monster.

Nat reaches for the table with a sigh, then tosses his phone to you as a cut scene began. Find out yourself if your so concerned.

Uh...Thanks.

Nat adjusts his glasses without responding while you unlock his phone. It had a thick black case on it, but it hadn't stopped a small crack from creeping across the top left corner. You pres your back against the arm of the couch and go to his inbox, opening the conversation he was having with Tex. From the looks of it, he didn't respond to anything, just read them. That must have been annoying, at least you would find it annoying. It takes two seconds to send back and 'ok' or 'received' or whatever he said when somebody was telling him to do something. Then again, saying nothing did seem to be his speed, and leaving you wondering if he had actually been listening or was engrossed in his fantasy world.

Is prince ok? -Angel

You watch Nat play his game while waiting for a response. He spoke quietly to himself every so often, but you couldn't even come close to figuring out what he was saying. The only way you knew he had even said anything was his lips moving. Aside from his hands he was as still as a statue. Nat might as well have been another piece of furniture.

He should be, Mare says hes in surgery. He doesn't sit still though. I wouldn't be surprised if the docs ended up pumpin him full of painkillers to knock him out the next couple of days.

Surgery?

Nothing big, Reconstruction, really. Sounds worse than it as. Most of the breaks were clean, that's all. It can happen to anybody.

If you say so...

You nod to yourself then set the phone on the table. You wanted to believe he would be okay, if what Tex was saying was true, then he would be. You were almost sure of it. But still, you didn't feel any better knowing that. Even if Nat didn't care, you felt obliged to tell him what was going on. Tex says he's in surgery, but he'll be okay.

Nat doesn't give any sign that he heard you. He just continued to wander around what looked like an abandoned hospital. You hug your knees to your chest and rest your chin on your upraised knees, staring at a spot on the dark blue floor. I don't think I can keep doing this...If you were going to keep blacking out, how could you be sure that you were in control of this? You were next to certain that your father was still out for your blood, and it wasn't as if there was anyone else you could turn to.

You flinch when Nat suddenly stands, but it was only to switch controllers. A message had popped up to say the battery was running low. He glances into the kitchen to check the time on the stove, and grabs his headset from the drawer in the TV stand before dropping onto the couch again. It was almost three but he didn't show any signs of going to bed. His phone nearly vibrates itself off the table before he finally reaches for it. His eyes narrow slightly as he reads the caller ID, then answers with a snappy, What? He piles pillows up behind himself, then drapes his black quilt over his legs, before switching to another game from his library. Later...I'm busy...Tell him yourself. He holds the phone out to you as one of his friends logged on.

You glance at the name before holding the phone to your ear. Hello?

You're still awake? You don't have to wait up for us, I don't think we're going to come home tonight. You should rest. There's blankets in the closet at the end of the hall, and you can sleep in the room to the left of that. Or kick Nat off the couch. He's not going to move otherwise.

You glance at him, bundled up and murmuring to whoever was on the other end of his call and smile. Your probably right about that. You wanted to find some comfort in Mary's calling to check up on you, but you couldn't. You didn't know what you wanted, or needed to feel better, but sleep wasn't it. You just wanted to figure out what was going on without feeling like something was being hidden from you. You weren't sure you would even get that Did you call your parents? I don't want them thinking we kidnapped you. Tex doesn't do well in lockup.

You thought she was joking, but you could hear Tex comment in the background, I could have taken him. The little punk was half my size.

Mary giggles, and you can imagine her rolling her eyes. You stretch your legs out in front of you, resting your eyes for a moment. No. They aren't home anyway.

When she spoke again, Mary sounded doubtful, but she didn't argue. If you say so. She pauses again, speaking quietly to whoever was puling her attention away. I got to go. Teeter's going to come over in the morning to bring you home. Tell Nat to make sure the door is unlocked.

Okay.

Good. Now go to bed. One of you needs to be responsible and it's clearly not going to be Nat.

Nat snorts, as if he had heard Mary calling him irresponsible. I will, goodnight.

'night. Mary hangs up and you place Nat's phone back on the table. Mary says make sure the door is unlocked for Teeter.

Nat cringes and waves you off. Did he not like any of them? There had to be some reason behind it, but you were afraid to ask. You'd hate to be unwittingly on the receiving end of his silent treatment too. You didn't want the time you spent with any of them to be harder than it needed to be. You look to the clock again and sigh. A much as you had been enjoying your time with Nat, you felt like being alone. Even if you didn't sleep, you wouldn't mind laying down for a few hours. I'm going to bed.

Nat waves you off again, still mumbling to his friend. You follow Mary's directions, and take a blanket and pillow from the hall closet, then turn into the room beside it. The streetlamp outside gives you enough light to move around, but you drop onto the soft carpet instead of the bed. You didn't want to get too comfortable here, otherwise you might not have wanted to leave. You stare at the sliver of sky visible from in between the buildings. Even with everything that had happened, fatigue refused to force you into oblivion for a few hours. You were just numb. The minutes crawl by and nothing. You couldn't think. Couldn't sleep. Couldn't even think about eating anything either. A full stomach never failed to make you drowsy.

As the first tendrils of dawn crept through the dingy window you were still laying there. Nat hadn't slept either from the sounds of it. You could faintly hear him talking to his friends after he thought you were asleep, although he still wasn't loud enough for you to make out anything he had been saying. In the back of your mind, you kept hoping Mary wouldn't have been upset with you for not sleeping, but the guilt wasn't enough to get you to try to close your eyes again. All you could see was red. Almost as if their blood had seeped into you and stained the world that wretched color.

After quite a bit of struggling, Harris and Williams finally managed to find the building they were looking for on the outskirts of town. If there hadn't already been a unit on the scene, Harris would have thought that it was some sort of set up. Who the hell just 'happens' across a blood bath like this miles away from anything worth seeing? Something here didn't add up. But as it hadn't even been anything more than an anonymous tip, they couldn't even begin to track down who had called them.

What have we got?

The coroner was still on the scene, taking pictures, samples, and trying to figure out just how many bodies there were. They were up to twelve. But there were definitely more than that. It was hard to sift through all the viscera without disturbing the crime scene. It'd take another few hours to properly catalog and photograph everything before they could even begin to think about moving bodies. Or what was left of them.

The smell of death lingers in the air, and blood had seeped into the carpets and spattered on the walls and ceiling. Harris and Williams squelch through the decrepit house, granted, Williams was more apprehensive than his counterpart. He lingered in the open doorway long after Harris had followed the coroner into the next room. He had a hard time keeping up with all the technical jargon they spouted off. How hard was it to say shot through the chest, or overdose?

His shoes left shallow imprints in the carpet, as if it was wet sand rather than yarn. He hadn't missed much in his detour besides Harris continued forward in his spiral of frustration and unanswered questions. There was nothing to really tell at this point. He knew these two cases had to be connected, but how? Was there some new drug out there capable of causing all this? If there was, then Harris had a feeling he'd be spending more time finding scenes like this. He didn't like it. And if the press caught wind of it it would be all over from there. There would be more than enough grief to go around in a case with far fewer answers than there were questions. How the hell were you supposed to even begin to write a report about this? It looked like a scene from some overrated slasher flick. After the coroner finished pointing out several out of place things here or there, Harris surveyed the scene in front of him with his hands on his hips. He blows out a breath of air, breaking the eerie stillness of the place. We've got our work cut out for us this time.

As much as you hadn't even wanted to come this morning, you showed up at school. The day passed by as slow as it normally did, although when you emerged at the final bell again, there was a news van parked near the front gate. You kept your head down and plowed by, trying not to draw attention to yourself but the cameraman called out to you. Hey kid! You got a sec'?

You freeze in your tracks, reluctantly turning to him. He couldn't want that much from you, and it wasn't like you could play it off by thinking it was someone else. You had cut out of last period fifteen minutes early for a 'bathroom break'. I guess.

He hoists a heavy looking camera onto his shoulder, while a new anchor fixes her makeup in one of the side mirrors of the van. Not that it did much. Her eyes were too big and her nose was too small. How'd you like to be on TV?

He tried to make it sound exciting, and while this was the first time the news had parked in front of your school, you had wandered through several background shots. Besides why would they want to talk to you? Why?

You young folk always got something to say. So say a little something about what the cops found at that old mansion outside of town.

You feel your eyes widen as our heart begins to race. Had they really found the bodies already? You would have thought it would take a lot longer than this. Nobody ever went out there. Nobody. There had to be somebody working behind the scenes who saw something. And if that was the case, you might find yourself in an unfortunate situation. An interview was the last thing you wanted. Especially if it was going to put your name and face out there. You didn't need anybody putting two and two together. Of course it was more likely some vagrants that had been wandering around and stumbled across it, but still. Your frayed nerves were starting to get the best of you. Between this and sleeping a couple hours, at most, at one time, you weren't sure you could handle this.

Thankfully a large group came wandering out of the front gates, and you blew the guy off. I don't believe in being filmed. In his daze, you briskly headed for home again. But you lingered long enough to hear the camera man call out to some other kids. Looks like it was their lucky day.

Ciel

You groan as your phone goes off for what felt like the thousandth time this hour. Alois wouldn't stop calling and texting you. He knew you'd get fed up eventually and respond to him, and you hated it. Even if you made Sebastian do it, it would only be a matter of time before he went back to pestering you. You wouldn't mind if maybe you had something to occupy yourself with, but Sebastian had run off with a few other members of the circle and left you behind to go over reports. Which you had finished about an hour ago. It was only two. It wasn't as if he was going to be coming home anytime soon. You wouldn't be surprised if he didn't come home at all. While you didn't regret refusing to go, you were regretting not blocking Alois' number when you had the chance.

Ciel~! Don't tell me you got drunk again. Sebastian really isn't doing his job. I'd never let you destroy your body like this. :(

What do you want?

Finally! Ciel~ your so slooooooow, but I forgive you. ;)

What do you want, Alois?

I'm getting there geez. Your so pushy.

You glare at your phone while waiting for Alois to finally get to the point. You feel a headache forming. The sooner you dealt with him the better. He should have just started off asking in the first place. While it would have taken a lot of scrolling to get there, you would have eventually found it.

Who's this Angel kid? Huh? You guys need to keep him on a tighter leash. If I ran around killing all these people, I'd have been killed ages ago. . He's quite the violent little brute isn't he?

Where'd you hear that from?

Ciel, don't tell me your doing something scandalous without me! ;A: I thought we were close. I want a piece of whatever your getting ;)

You didn't know how Alois had figured that out so fast, but you didn't trust him to keep his mouth shut if you did tell him. What was this about? Angel had been killing people? You should have known better than to think everything was under control. He had quite the temper. Thinking about it, it was more surprising that he hadn't killed more. Sebastian throwing one of his little tantrums was more than enough proof of how destructive a demon could be.

There's nothing for you to be getting a 'piece' of. If anybody is trying to create a scandal its you,

That's not an answer Ciel~ It's okay to admit you've grown bored with Sebastian, not everyone can be like me and Claude~ It's natural to drift apart over the years.

Sebastian and I are perfectly fine and if you must know he's simply an illegitimate child of some poor idiot who bedded a human. I am not keeping tabs on him. Nor do I care what he's doing. If he exposes himself then it gives us a chance to cut down the heretic and strengthen our ties to the humans. Nothing more. Why don't you get your head out of the clouds and think seriously for a change? Not all of us can live in a fantasy world.

Ciel your so mean when you get angry, I almost forgot what it was like to see you so fired up. :p I love it~ If that's all he is why can't we keep him? ;) I've been looking for something to play with and if you don't want him then it's fair game~

No.

I'll fight you for him. But would it really be worth it Ciel?

I said NO Alois. You don't want anything to do with that.

Why not? Is he yours?

This has nothing to do with that.

Yes it does. You were supposed to be MINE Ciel. If I can't have you, then I want your toys. Eventually you'll run out. There's something you aren't telling me. So unless you do, I'm going to take him AND figured out what you're trying to hide.

There's nothing to hide. I won't be the one you answer to if you lay hands on him.

You couldn't stand the thought of Alois putting his hands on Angel. Even if Lucifer wasn't all that fond of him, he certainly would make a show of it if someone other than him caused harm to him. That and you didn't trust him. You knew exactly what he did with his 'toys' once he got bored with them. Obvious aside, there wasn't anything truly extraordinary about Angel, but he deserved better than having his neck snapped or something of the sort in when Alois was struck by a particularly foul mood.

Don't tell me he's Sebastian's? My my, Ciel, there really must be trouble in paradise then. I'm not surprised though. He IS a whore.

It's not! Do you really think for a moment Sebastian would let any child of his do such a stupid thing? What business do you have calling him a whore when you've fucked your way across the globe and back.

I have a hard time believing that Ciel. Do you really know what Sebastian's doing ALL the time while you sit at home like the good little housewife you are. I'd never cheat on you Ciel.

Take him. I don't care. You reap what you sew Alois.

But you do.

I do not.

Your a terrible liar Ciel. I know what your doing and it won't work. I'm going to figure it out Ciel. You'll regret not telling me when you do.

Your hands were shaking by time you threw your phone into the top drawer. The nerve. Why did things always end up here? You had half a mind to tell him who Angel's father was just to spite him. Or not. If he gets himself killed that was one less problem you had to deal with. What happened between you and Sebastian was none of his business. He certainly shouldn't have been trying to pry. If he kept spouting off nonsense like that Sebastian was going to put his head upon a pike long before he even came close to getting his answer. Not that you would have minded any.

Angel

A vaguely familiar worn down pick up was waiting in front of your school. It wasn't until Sam threw open the passenger door that you realized it was her and Teeter. Hey Angel.

You climb into the passengers seat and slam the door shut behind you. 'Sup?

Teeter snorts and rolls his eyes, shifting gears and pulling out into the road. Ice cream. That's whats 'sup'?

Sam rolls her eyes. Ignore him. Everyone else does.

You don't.

Uh, why are we getting ice cream? You were confused as to exactly what was going on, but they both seemed so cheerful compared to the other day. Unless they were just trying to cushion you up for some bad news. You weren't sure you could handle any more of it though. You still weren't sleeping more than a few hours a night.

Cus dumbass got discharged this morning, duh. Little dude was supposed to tell you.

Wait, you mean Prince? No, nobody told me. He's alright now?

Teeter shrugs and Sam chides, you can't tell Nat to do anything.

You also feel the need to add, he doesn't even have my number.

Mary said he did... You shrug. Maybe she gave it to him then, but Nat probably wasn't listening. You got the feeling he might not have liked Teeter either. Although, in his defense, Teeter did take some getting used to. He was a bit spacy at times.

You didn't think Prince would have been out so soon. Tex must have been right when he said it sounded worse than it was. A little of the weight on your shoulder lifted hearing that. At least he was going to be alright. In no time he'd probably be back to picking fights with Sam and doing whatever it was he did.

I bet his harem's fawning all over him.

Prince's?

Sam rolls her eyes in response, leaving Teeter to explain, how a prissy drag queen like that is so popular I'll never understand. But the whole lot is bunch of freaks anyway. Takes one to know one I suppose. He shrugs, flying past the ice cream parlor. He must have had some place else in mind. Or was too distracted to notice. But Sam didn't point it out either.

You never would have guess Prince was so popular. Hard to swallow couldn't even begin to describe him. But now that you thought about it, words like 'prissy' and 'high maintenance' did come to mind. Certainly not everyone would have been able to handle him. Say there's a new one that's been following him around. A tiny little fucker covered in tats and piercings. Where the fuck did Princess pick that one up?

Sam shrugs, idly twirling a few strands of her hair. Who cares? I be he'll be gone in a week. Although I'm impressed cus he can't be whipped.

Or can he?

Sam punched Teeter's arm when he reached a stop sigh, glaring at him. Although you didn't understand why. The buildings and streets gradually emptied out and grew run down as Teeter headed out of downtown. Although you ended up in front of a seemingly abandoned house. If it wasn't for the cars parked out front and the loud music you wouldn't have thought anybody was inside. Teeter sighs as he kills the engine and drops to the ground, holding the door open for Sam as she climbs out. You drop to the ground and follow him inside. Or tried to. A cloud of smoke swirled out through the door when he cracked it and Teeter abruptly closed it, smiling sheepishly before excusing himself and slipping inside. The music died almost instantly, followed by a lot of thudding, somebody yelping and a glass breaking. Sam rolled her eyes and threw the door open. Teeter was wrestling around with several other guys. A plate lay shattered on the floor and one of the smaller guys threw open the windows. It didn't do much to get rid of the smell. The fuck did I tell you clowns?

The response of the guy he was beating into submission was garbled, but it was good enough for Teeter to release him and pull down his shirt. Although one of them playfully shoved him over afterwards. Hey, its the little dude, sup little dude. You sure saved our sorry asses.

Teeter frowns, rolling his eyes as he hauls himself off the ground. Them you can ignore. Especially when they're higher than a bunch of fucking kites.

Teeter leads you and Sam down the hall to the kitchen, which was more organized than the living room. He threw a few windows open then opened the freezer and pulled out an ice cream cake. Granted half of it was missing. He glares towards the living room, and the small group that had been in there must have heard the freezer close because they were strangely quiet. Fucking... He carefully places it on the counter and goes back to the living room. I leave you alone for half an hour and you eat the one thing I told you to leave it alone. There was a lot of protesting from the group while Sam rummaged through the cabinets. Bowl or plate?

Bowl.

She hands you a blue bowl with a chip in the rim, and takes another one for herself. She takes a knife out of the drawer. Fork or spoon?

Spoon. It felt so out of place to just ignore the brawl going on in the living room and eat ice cream.

Big piece, or little piece? You found yourself distracted as a small, effeminate boy came wandering in a well-worn t-shirt several sizes too big. He drops a bowl into the sink, sleepily rubbing one of his eyes. Hey Sammy, it's been awhile.

You know the others are taking the heat for you.

He swishes the hem of his shirt innocently. I have no idea what your talking about. He turns to you and winks before adding, your cake was very good. And it said 'way to go'. Or something. I can't really read cursive. He yawns and balances on his toes while reaching for the ceiling. He drops to the floor again. There's no way this scrawny kid's gonna eat a whole cake by himself. He opened his mouth to ask something else, but fell short when somebody in the living room started saying 'shorty did it'. His pale eyes widen as he scurries out of the room and softly closes the door to his room back.

Sam laughs quietly to herself. He's shameless, sorry about your cake though.

You shrug, while Sam cuts off two medium sized pieces. That's okay. He was right though. You guys didn't have to get me a cake.

Don't worry about it. Teeter likes doing sappy stuff like this. Besides you deserve it. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth and all that. It was mostly my doing. I wanted ice cream. Forgive me?

It's okay, I'm not mad. You kick a chair away from the table and plop down, chipping away at the mound of ice cream as Teeter barges into Shorty's room. He squeals when Teeter picks him up and carries him into the kitchen over his shoulder, then drops him onto the floor. He looked dazed, but it was hard to tell if he was faking it or not. Found our little sneak.

Shorty yawns, leaning heavily against the counter. I have no idea what your talking about. Teeter settles for smacking the back of his head. Shorty sighs and rolls his eyes while apologizing un-enthusiastically. I'm sorry I ate your cake. He pauses a moment and smiles sweetly before adding, But I'd probably do it again so no regrets.

Teeter sighs but lets it slide. Shorty turns to Sam and asks, So how's prince doing?

Sam groans shoveling a large spoonful of ice cream into her mouth. Still not interested in a 'little twinky cream puff'.

Shorty pouts, planting his hands on his hips. I'm past that. I've got a girlfriend ya' know. But I'd be fucked if I got ground pounded by a demon. Sam rolls her eyes, obviously not convinced. At least, Minnie told me that's what happened...welp. I'm going to bed. 'Night. Thanks for the cake Tweety.

Don't call me that.

Sam pushes the rest of her ice cream towards him in distraction, and Teeter turns to you again. He heaves a sigh then smiles. Word of advice, never live with a bunch of guys. Never. Don't do it.

You nod slowly, not entirely sure about what he was trying to get at, more focused on your ice cream than Teeter. It must not have been easy for him to be in charge of all these guys on his own, especially when they were as hare-brained as they were. Not wonder Tex was so pissed off the other day. Even with Teeter around, they didn't seem much more than a bunch of kids trying to play the hero.

I owe you one. Well several, but nobody ever really says that. Man we really got our ass handed to us. Tex ain't ever going to let me live this one down. My stomach hurts thinking about it. But at least he didn't get my face. Last time the fucker broke my nose.

That's because last time you got the rover smashed and Nat was going to get you himself. I've never seen him so mad. No actually the last time he was that mad was when Prince spilled kool-aid on his X box.

I'd be mad too!

You hadn't really thought much of it. You didn't really know what was going on in all honesty. You couldn't take all the credit, but Teeter seemed to feel you deserved it,and since it was Sam's idea, she must have been okay with it. You smile, idly stirring the melted ice cream that remained in your bowl. Don't worry about it. I wasn't really expecting a thank you.

Teeter's boisterous laughter caught you off guard for a moment, but Sam caught your eye and smiled. It must have been something you didn't get. Where'd you guys get this kid? You don't see too many like him anymore. But still. You need anything, I'm there, no questions asked. Your part of the crew kid, for better or worse.

Ciel

After dealing with Alois you went to lay down, at least after you tried making tea. No matter how many times Sebastian showed you it never came out the same as him. It had grown dark around you, but you couldn't summon the urge to move. Not even when you heard the front door open, and everyone returned from their outing. You hardly noticed the door opening until Sebastian was sitting beside you. He brushed some of your hair away from your forehead. Don't tell me reading tired you out.

You weakly shook your head, weakly lying, my head hurts.

He frowns, resting his hand against your forehead. Are you well enough to come downstairs for a little while?

I'm not coming to listen to you all reminiscing about the glory days.

Sebastian sighs, gently running his fingers through your hair. You close your eyes, waiting for some witty come back. I wish it was for such reasons. No. There's something else. We've received word the states. Master wants us to return, but he's making it official now.

You brush his hand aside and slowly sit up, pulling off your shirt. What happened now?

Sebastian heads for your closet, laying out some clothes for you while you kicked your pants off. There have been numerous murders in a very short time frame of a very un-human way. Master simply wishes to strengthen our ties to them by assisting in anyway he can.

Alois was right then...

Pardon?

You shake your head, buttoning your shirt while Sebastian slipped your belt through the loops in your pants. As much as you didn't want to admit it, Alois was better at this than you thought he would be. There must have been a shred of truth to what he was trying to tell you earlier after all. Now you just hoped he'd keep his mouth shut when it came to Angel. You didn't trust him with what he had found out, and you were all walking a very slippery slope indeed. Sebastian might have been forgiven, but if things came to light you would have been no better than Alois. You hadn't actually made a point of getting in Lucifer's good graces. Let's just get this over with.

Sebastian wraps his arm around your waist as you trudge out into the hall and blink in the bright light. He guided you until your eyes adjusted, then you picked up the pace, heading down the front stairs then turning down the hall to one of the old ballrooms. Sebastian followed closely behind, but didn't say anything until outside the ballroom. He took a moment to fix your collar before opening the door for you, and following you inside. The others were already gathered, and once Lucifer saw you standing there he began his overly formal speech, especially when considering the subject matter.

Word had gotten around about what had happened, but nobody was expecting him to actually do anything about it. This whole 'grand plan' was coming apart at the seams. At times you weren't even sure he knew what was going on anymore. You rest your weight against Sebastian, struggling to keep your eyes open. Before you couldn't sleep, now that you actually had something to do, no matter how trivial this was, you wanted nothing more than to slip into the abyss for a few hours. As you all may or may not have heard already, another one of our comrades has fallen to the hands of this unseen enemy we've been facing. While it may not be the most pleasant of things to have to do in trying times such as these, but we cannot have doubt running rampant through the minds of our lesser halves when it comes to such a touchy subject. As such, I have come to the conclusion, that it may be best for all of us, if we return to America and try to smooth things over the best we can. There were grumblings of doubt as you straightened and ducked out of the door, heading back upstairs towards your room. Sebastian waited a moment before following. All that was left was damage control. You'd rather start packing now rather than wait. You hated when Sebastian packed for you.

He turned down the bed for you while you took your pants off and undid a few buttons of your shirt, before curling up on your side. Sebastian tucks you in, resting his hand on your forehead once again. It wasn't like you could get sick anymore, but the way he was hovering made you think otherwise. He eventually sighs, before standing, gently chiding you. You shouldn't push yourself so hard. I'll bring you something warm.

Gus Kinney: hey its been a while but we are back and another chapter for you the next should be out as soon as i can think of how the next chapter will go


	9. The Queen dies

Angel

Sitting at home by yourself had become even ore boring and lonesome than before.

After spending so much time with Mary and the others, it was hard to get used to the silence than clung to the house when you were sitting around with nothing to do.

Sometimes the TV was enough to fill the oppressive silence, so you had taken to leaving the one in the living room on most of the time, even if you weren't always there watching it.

Although, today you found yourself watching the interview you had skipped out on.

The kids in your school uniform didn't have anything profound to say and most of it had been cut out so it was nothing more than a few haphazardly spliced together sentences.

You figured it would have been longer than that with the way the camera man had been hassling you.

The following excerpt was what actually caught your attention.

The less than attractive news anchor with the disproportionate face was staring grimly into the camera while reciting a memorized blurb.

In light of recent events, some of New York's finest are working their hardest to put and end to the string of grisly murders, and place the killer behind bars.

There has not been word yet of how they propose to go about this, but when they do, be sure to catch it first, here on Channel Eight.

Your hands trembles as you turn the TV off and sink into the couch.

A sigh escapes you as you lean your head against the back of the couch and stare up at the ceiling.

Even if they couldn't trail all of this back to you, (since you had convinced yourself that you would already be behind bars if they knew you were guilty) hearing about what you had done on TV still put you on edge.

You hadn't meant to Well, maybe the first time you did, but Brooks was a tool. He deserved it Much worse actually.

As far as you were concerned, he got off easy.

But from what you managed to gather from the others and your fragmented memories, you had killed a lot more than a few people the second time around.

Tex hadn't come any closer to telling you what actually happened, and when Nat offered to show your the rover footage, Mary started yelling at him and told him to delete it.

You don't think he actually did, since he kept playing his game and told her to do it herself, but you couldn't bring yourself to ask.

The way Prince had been avoiding you like the plague said more than enough. For a guy with some busted ribs and bruised bones, he could sure move fast.

If he hadn't been picking with Sam when you were there, you wouldn't have even know he was out of the hospital.

Mary apologizing for him only made it worse.

Things couldn't keep going on this way, you knew that and yet...you weren't ready for it.

Things had been so calm since then, almost jovial.

You didn't want them to end, but you knew they would.

All you could do was cross your fingers and hope it didn't have to come to...that again.

It could happen right? If it was that bad he wouldn't want to put you in that situation again.

Or he just would put you and Prince together.

From what you heard, it would be at least another month until he could even consider it though.

But you didn't buy it since Prince was carrying on as if nothing had happened.

You straighten up and turn the TV back on, to a movie station this time, then you head upstairs to your room.

You still had homework to do, and mom might start getting on your case if your grades dropped anymore.

There was no way you were going to get away with spending all this time away from home if she was actually here.

Ciel and Sebastian

You had spent the whole morning staring into empty suitcases and rearranging the clothes in your drawer and closet.

You didn't know what to pack Sebastian always did it for you, although last night he kept pestering you so your told him you'd do it yourself.

You were coming to regret your little outburst, but you didn't want to ask him for help.

How hard could it really be? You had tossed your phone charger, toiletries and several books into a carry on.

At least it was something, even though flying usually put you to sleep.

You were almost thankful when Sebastian came in and leaned against the door frame.

He laughed quietly, while you went back to rearranging clothes, before closing the door back and taking over.

You drop onto a chair near the fireplace and fold your arms over your chest.

I could have done it.

I wouldn't have doubted it. But there's something I need to ask you, Why is Alois texting me saying 'Ciel gave me Angel'?

You shrug, watching him refold a few shirts you considered throwing into your bag earlier, then neatly doing just that.

He sighs and turns to you. I'm not going to finish until you tell me.

There's nothing to tell. He was being troublesome so I told him he could have him if it suited. He thinks he's yours. Whether or not he actually believes it is still up in the air but either way I figure Angel is perfectly safe. If he kills he kills him and if he was your son he's unintentionally invoked your wrath, because you had a reason to put him in your place. If he's not your son, he's still invoking someones wrath anyway and you know as well as I do that as much as Lucifer hates him, he'd have a field day wringing the neck of anyone who dares to prune branches from his family tree.

Sebastian hums thoughtfully, continuing to pack your things while thinking.

You weren't wrong He knew that. He was just trying to weigh his options, although apparently you hadn't thought everything though thoroughly enough.

What if he actually goes through with it? This is Alois we're talking about. Him and Angel can have a little temper tantrum and wipe out the city for us. I'm being serious.

You put your hands up in surrender.

There wasn't anything you could do if Alois did decide to take Angel under his wing, assuming he could get him alone long enough to convince him to do so, Of he'd send Claude to do it, If that was the case, it would never get done, Claude would never put up with having to deal with both of them. It was a miracle Alois was still breathing after a couple hundred years.

He won't.

How do you know? Are you really prepared to lose our trump card if things come to worst?

Sebastian, it wouldn't take much to get Alois to give him back, A few flattering phrases here and putting up with him a few hours on some make believe 'date' and he'll do just about anything, That boy has a one track mind.

You sound very sure of yourself.

I am,I have no reason not to be, You can't honestly tell me your following wouldn't do the same.

Sebastian winces at the thought as he zips one suitcase, then rights it at the foot of your bed.

My... following, as you so quaintly put it, isn't as gullible. So you admit it then? You smile coyly when Sebastian helplessly looks over and sighs again while closing one of your drawers.

Do as you wish then, But I'm not fixing it this time.

I didn't ask you to.

Sebastian meticulously places things in bags, then places the final one with the others on the floor near the bed.

The curtains had been drawn, the bed stripped and dust covers placed on all the furniture, all that was left now was to actually leave.

Sebastian checked your carry on, and exchanged the books that were inside with others, although he left one of them.

Why did you do that? You know as well as I do you aren't going to read these anyway. And if you do, it might as well be something I can enjoy as well. Or you can bring your own.

That's not nearly the same. I'd much rather read with you.

He smiles sweetly, then zips your bag again as Lucifer knocks on the door frame.

He tries his hardest to sound upset with you, but in reality he just sounded tired. Maybe flustered.

He had a seemingly endless supply of problems to deal with as you did.

You two weren't at breakfast.

I overslept. Sebastian added, Ciel can't pack on his own.

You defiantly fold your arms over your chest but say nothing.

You had been very busy sleeping, ignoring Alois, and supervising Sebastian.

You couldn't bring yourself to pencil in attending a menial breakfast where there wouldn't even be decent coffee. He runs his fingers through his hair and waves off your meek excuses.

He was too frazzled to care.

I'm choosing to enlighten you because you two seem to be the most capable in the present situation, We're taking out whatever uncultured barbarian is trying to undo years of hard work with a pile of bodies and were going to squash this pathetic attempt at a revolution before these mortals bite the hand that feeds them.

It was refreshing to hear him speaking so bluntly, even if you and Sebastian had made yourselves a part of the problem.

But now that you knew what he was trying to plan it would be that much easier to get everything done under his nose.

Especially when you already knew who this 'uncultured barbarian' was. Lucifer might have had a coronary if he found out this was his sons doing.

You were almost tempted to tell him. Almost.

Angel and the Resistance

I'll get to work as soon as we touch down then. We have a lot to do in a small time frame, It might be hard to get anything done however with all these humans trampling through everything. Anything that might have been useful is long gone or stuffed in a box somewhere waiting to be cataloged.

I'll keep that in mind, but time is of the essence. We can't let this continue on much longer. It won't be good for any of us.

He leaves as briskly as he had come, leaving you and Sebastian knowingly staring at each other in silence.

Tex and Mary had picked you up from school and took you to the bakery you had gone to when you first met.

Considering the time of day, it was pretty dead, not that you were complaining.

It didn't take much for places like this to get cramped and feel claustrophobic.

Not to mention the calm atmosphere broke with all those people talking.

But there was something up, you could feel it. The air between you was tense.

Tex kept fidgeting around in the chair and while Mary was checked her phone every few minutes.

Sometimes she responded to a text, but other than that, it seemed more out of habit than actually expecting anything.

While waiting for our order Mary commented, You better not try to get a hold of Nat in an emergency, you'd bleed out before he decided to check his phone.

Tex smirks, and bluntly retorts, That's because he doesn't like you.

Nat doesn't like anyone who's three dimensional.

No...I'm pretty sure he doesn't mind Sam.

Mary rolls her eyes and leans across the table.

That's because he got Sam to play that Apocalypse game with him.

Tex pulls his cracked phone out of his pocket and opens up his messenger, asking Mary what she was trying to ask him.

She passes him her phone instead.

Apparently reading their long, seemingly one-sided exchange was faster than trying to explain...or they didn't want you to know.

Tex slowly types something out then almost instantly gets a response.

Tex smirks, triumphantly holding his phone out to show Mary, who pouts and abruptly stands to go get drinks, and you muffin.

While she was gone a short blond boy and a taller man with glasses came wandering in.

The boy bounced along, babbling away about nothing and habitually towing his companion along by the arm.

He glances around then turns, beaming while enthusiastically tugging on the older man's arm.

The bored way he stared down at the boy reminded you a bit of Sebastian, although Sebastian wasn't nearly as detached as he was.

He almost looked like he was in pain.

You felt sorry for him.

The boy shyly hides behind his companion's arm when you lock eyes for a moment.

His icy blue eyes sparkled with excitement as you quickly look away and take a bite out of your muffin.

You hadn't seen him around before, even though he looked about your age.

Although it wasn't saying much.

Between all the tourists and countless other schools in the area, you got used to seeing someone somewhere habitually then all of the sudden they up and leave.

There was something about him though... it was a little unsettling.

Maybe it was just your imagination, or the heavy aura around his stoic companion getting to you.

Yeah, that has to be it.

You unconsciously tune out Mary and Tex's playful teasing while the boy ordered something.

He had an accent, but it was hard to place where it was from.

It seemed like a mix of a bunch of different ones. Claude, what about you? The boy pouts when Claude shrugs, then proceeds to order something he apparently didn't like because Claude enthusiastically corrected him.

A mischievous smirk spreads across the boys face as he grabs Claude's arm again.

The boy opts for a table in front of you, closer to the door than you were, and takes out his phone, his fingers effortlessly gliding across the surface as he typed out what looked like paragraphs.

Claude sits beside him, pulling off his glasses to polish them.

Mary and Tex stop talking and you look up, hoping you hadn't missed anything important.

Thankfully you hadn't, because Tex asks, Are you busy this weekend? Nope.

Why, do you have something in mind? Maybe. You a fast learner? Depends on what I'm learning.

Nat needs some help building something.

He refuses unless he had some help and well.

Look, help. Plus you're the only one he gets along with, and we'll be busy getting parts.

Sammy's off doing recon and who the hell knows where Prince is.

That kid didn't listen to a damn thing the doctor said. He really doesn't do bed rest.

Mary feels the need to correct him, and informs you that Prince had a photo shoot.

Silence falls between you again.

The boy in front of you was still typing away on his phone, and Claude had taken to staring out the window.

When their order gets called Claude stands and goes to the counter, while the boy lingers a moment, sending one final text half standing.

He whips around suddenly and bounds over, ignoring Mary and Tex entirely as he slips a folded scrap of pink paper towards you His cheeks were bright red, and he aimlessly tugged at the hem of his over-sized sweater as he haltingly asked, call me sometime...maybe? Or text? We just got here...but you made this place seem very promising.

He beams, then dashes away, hiding behind Claude as they leave and head down the street.

You stare blankly at the piece of paper for a moment, figuring you should just leave it there.

Who just does that? The boy seemed harmless enough, but...

Tex and Mary lean over the table.

You lean back, taking a rather large bite out of your muffin to give yourself time to think while you chewed.

You didn't like where they were trying to take this. So...You gonna call him? He seems nice.

And cute. You swallow forcefully and cough a few times to clear crumbs from your throat.

Probably not.

Why not? Tex nudges you with his elbow and winks, Come one, you know you want to.

You calmly push the paper away from you and fold your arms over your chest, trying to sound firm in your judgment.

There may not have been any harm in texting him, but you had enough to deal with without some foreigner trying to get you to show them around the city.

You didn't even know where you would take him if he asked.

You didn't really go anywhere.

The park and here. That was it.

And wherever Tex and Mary brought you.

Not really. I'll do it for you.

No thanks.

Tex frowns and leans back in his chair, nearly falling out since he was sitting in backwards.

You're not fun.

Young people these days have no sense of adventure.

Mary giggles and teases, Getting in a car with you is more than enough adventure.

You smile and hide your laughter by finishing off the rest of our muffin.

Tex stands and turns the chair around.

Then you can drive.

Mary shakes her head and does the same.

As if, you'll be paying more for insurance than you already do.

I can't drive here.

There's too many cars.

You stand, and after a moments deliberation take the number.

Even if you don't text him.

Tex could stop pestering you if he thought you were going to.

One the way back to your house, the atmosphere grew tense again, and you found your thoughts drifting back to where they had before.

What about the angels? Didn't they have some stake in all of this? The demons seemed to be having a field day with all of this.

Wouldn't they want to get involved as well? They were as affected by this whole thing as every one else weren't they?

Tex must have noticed your grim demeanor as he pulled in front of your house and asked, What's up? I've been thinking and...why aren't the angels getting involved with all of this? Tex shrugs and looks to Mary.

He must not have cared or really have given it any thought. Mary pauses thoughtfully, trying to gather her thoughts after wincing at the question.

Was it really that hard to answer? You didn't really know a lot about all of this stuff.

Well...it's really better that they aren't getting involved in all of this.

It's one thing for them to send down a few warriors to get rid of a few heretics, but for them to actually send down the forces, it would plunge the world into chaos.

So we'd have to be in pretty dire need for it to even be considered.

The demons were among us before all of this even happened.

Them choosing to make themselves known isn't really anything new.

She pauses long enough to shake her head. That's bad. If the angels come then we're all in trouble.

Sebastian and Ciel

You were still pretty jet lagged and half asleep when Alois' incessant text messages finally got the better of you and you checked them.

Sebastian throws his arms around your chest and peeks at the screen rolling his eyes and burying his face in your shoulder.

He's already at it then? Sadly.

You poorly imitate his voice and read some of his texts, Ciel, when are you getting here? It's been so boring without you.

You're going to stay with me right? You shake your head and wince at the thought.

You didn't trust Alois around you when your were asleep.

Sebastian claimed you didn't need to do it, but he certainly didn't have any qualms about crawling into bed next to you when you needed a break.

Whether he actually slept or not was still up for debate.

You almost drop your phone when you get to the bottom of his painfully long string of text and hit Sebastian's back a little harder than necessary.

You hated to admit it, but he was right.

Now you were going to have to deal with this on your own.

Rangling Alois and was definitely more than you could swallow.

What? Sebastian turns onto his back and sits up in one fluid movement, peering at your phone upside down.

He frowns and folds his arms over his chest. That certainly didn't take long.

I know. What are you going to do about it? That beast will eat him alive.

I know... You sigh and run your fingers through your hair, undoing the top few buttons on your shirt while poking out a response.

What the hell did you get yourself into?

Your eyes linger on Alois selfie with Angel in the background before sighing. And sending your message.

Ciel, guess who I gave my number to~?

Who?

Ciel, I'm hurt.

I know you can't take your eyes off of me but your supposed to be more observant than that. :(

Alois resends the picture of him with a circle drawn around angel and about a paragraph of text gushing over him.

He's even cuter in person~! And he actually texted me :3 I didn't think it'd work in all honesty. - He must be pretty lonely in that house all by himself ;-; he'll need me to keep him company~

I'm sure you'll do that.

Ciel can't you sound a little happy for me? Or is it because I left out the good part?

Which is?

Hmm...

I don't know Ciel You didn't even tell me when you left Or when you got here If we hadn't heard it through the grape vine I don't think I would have bothered texting you.

I don't think I should tell you Ciel~ Guess.

You throw your phone aside in frustration and press the heels of your hands into your eyes.

I'm going to kill him.

Why? Guess Ciel.

Why even bring it up if you aren't going to tell me? That boy needs a good smack.

Or to be run through?

Even better!

You pause with a sigh then add, he knows where he lives.

Sebastian's brow furrows while he thinks.

Not that there was much to consider.

We'd have to get to him before Alois could sink his claws in any deeper.

Forcefully.

But discreetly.

Would that even be possible? Angel had no reason to show his face around anywhere near you, and there was no way you could just 'cross paths' without some small amount of planning.

You had nothing.

Frustrated couldn't even begin to describe the level of self annoyance you were feeling.

This mental block had come at the worst possible time and Alois was the one who was going to benefit from it.

You wanted to rinse your hands of this whole thing just to spite him.

Ciel~ Do you give up yet? I'll tell you if you admit it, You'll never guess it anyway~ :3 I'm just too good.

You should really trust me more Ciel~! I'm more capable than you can imagine Well actually Claude found him.

But I did all the hard work!

For Sebastian's son he isn't stupid. :/

He is not. And fine. I give up. Tell me.

You could have said that in the first place. You're so stubborn Ciel~ :D Alright.

Be prepared.

Those two people with him Are leaders in the NY faction.

I.E. resistance leaders Ciel :(

What did that boy get himself into? He's going to get himself killed if his daddy finds out right?

Tell Sebastian to go easy on him, I'll punish him myself if you want ;)

What should I do? Kill them? Or wait? We can do a frame up~ I'm good at those, Ciel~

You hand Sebastian your phone, unable to handle Alois' flirty demeanor with such a serious topic.

It had put your stomach into knots that couldn't be attributed to the long flight.

What's Angel doing? You thought he'd stay out of trouble, not place himself at the center of it.

He wasn't going to turn his back on those humans for anything. You'd have to go through him to get anything done...or through Alois. Maybe his getting close to Angel would be a good thing, as long as you kept him even closer. Nothing could happen to Angel in the process.

There would be nothing to build a new foundation on if you lost him to the humans.

He never should have been left in the care of the humans in the first place.

Sebastian's eyes widen as he back tracks through your phone and asked the same question Alois just had: What are you going to do? You sigh again, reaching for your phone and type out a message to Alois while explaining yourself to Sebastian.

Hopefully he would agree with you.

We send him in of course. If he's so keen on sticking close to Angel, then we might as well make good use of him.

Angel and Alois

You wanted to be upset that Alois had actually came to pick you up from school, but honestly, you were more surprised than annoyed.

You didn't think he was actually going to show up.

It wouldn't have been the first time someone hadn't done something they said they would.

Even more surprisingly Claude wasn't with him.

Alois beams and latches onto your arm when he sees you, then releases you as quickly as he had grabbed you and folds his arms behind hi back, color rising to his cheeks.

It feels like it's been forever.

If you say so.

Alois turns, standing in the middle of the path.

So what do you want to do? I'm up for anything.

You shrug, adjusting the strap of your backpack.

I don't have anything planned.

I was just going to go home...

Then we can go there, If you want I mean. There's loads of other places to go if you don't. I just don't know where, Claude's been busy so we haven't been able to go shopping yet, But you don't want to do that, So no shopping I guess, I take forever and I buy lots of stuff, I have way more clothes than I know what to do with. You can have some if you want.

He stops suddenly and giggles, following you towards the front gate.

Sorry, I'm rambling, I do that sometimes, I don't have a lot of friends so I get excited and well...

He shrugs with a small, shy smile.

In all honesty you had tuned him out for most of it.

It didn't seem like you had missed anything important but the way he was carrying on was sort of overwhelming.

You were pretty sure Prince didn't even ramble this much.

He didn't even do it out of nervousness as Alois seemed to.

It was actually kind of cute...in an awkward way.

The way he talked reflected the way he texted.

Even when the words were right there in black and white you had a hard time following him.

He bounced all over the place as he did now.

Uh, no thanks, but we can go there I guess.

It's a little messy.

That's okay, I don't mind. I mean, if you aren't planning on having anyone over why clean? It's too much of a pain.

He playfully bumps into your hip and skips a few feet ahead of you, dancing around on the sidewalk as if he owned it.

Are you still going to your Uncle's this weekend?

Yeah.

Oh.

He kicks at a stray chunk of asphalt and falls into step with you, folding his hands behind his back again and staring at the ground.

It was the only way you could think of shutting down any plans he could have tried making, and you didn't dare invite him along.

You didn't know if he could be trusted yet.

Tex and Mary pushing you to hang out with him wasn't the same as them pushing you to get him to enlist.

Alois freezes on the sidewalk as a string of black cars go flying by.

He glares at them as if they had done something wrong to him then blurts out in his frustration, I hate those demons.

Driving around in those gaudy black cars and trying to get involved in all of this.

He whips around as you were about to start crossing and lets out an annoyed huff.

Don't you think so? Hell spawn have no place in the human world unless some dummy wants to get themselves possessed or something.

You shouldn't say that so loud.

Why not? You don't agree with me?

He pouts, tears brimming in his pale blue eyes as if you blowing off his statement had caused him physical pain.

You link arms with him and tow him across the street at a brisk pace when a school bus stops for you.

I never said that.

So you do?

More or less.

Ghosts are real.

Our house in France is haunted.

You're French?

Nope, Guess again!

I'm not telling either.

He pulls away from you and skips ahead of you again, although he missed the turn and had to backtrack a little.

Then in a sing-song he chanted, It's a secret! A secret secret, I'm never going to tell!

What if I guess it?

Alois hums, bouncing back to your side when you reach your front door.

He leans against the siding, staring out at the street.

Of course! I'd have to. But you won't get it.

I haven't been there in years.

Where haven't you been in years?

Alois opens his mouth to respond as you struggle with the lock, but eventually the door opens and you wave him inside.

He gently smacks your arm and follows you inside gazing around the living room and into the kitchen.

I'm not going to be tricked that easily, Angel. Should I take my shoes off? A lot of people don't like them inside.

You shrug, dropping your bag on the floor and closing the door back.

It's up to you, Make yourself comfortable.

Alois pauses for a moment, staring down at his somewhat girly purple boots before deciding to take them off.

His socks were purple too, and they matched.

Something you could say you couldn't be bothered to do most days.

Your house is really nice, It's comfy, Not like ours, It so big, I'm definitely going to bring you there one day, Your family can come too, It'll be fun. I've never had to show someone around before, Do you think I'd be good at it, Ooo is this your room?

Alois trails off and bounds into your room, flopping backwards onto your bed and looking around.

I don't like computers, I can't carry them around with me, Laptops much either, Tablets, Those are my thing, Although I sat on my other one...and sorta dumped water on another, Claude won't let me buy another one.

He smiles when you laugh at his clumsiness.

You were a little happy he didn't assume you knew a lot about computers though.

You didn't really know that much about them.

Although you probably wouldn't let him buy another one either. He'd probably break it.

Well can you blame him?

Alois pouts and sits up, patting a spot on the bed beside him.

Not really...but I still want another one.

I can't play-

He stops himself and smiles, pulling you to bed beside him.

Play what? Nothing.

He waves his hand as if it could put an end to the conversation, but you weren't going to let him.

His happiness was contagious.

You wanted to keep him talking, even if it was about some crappy game that you wouldn't even give a second glance to.

Tell 's embarrassing...

He blushes, pulling at his sleeves before jumping to the floor and pulling out his phone, his fingers gliding across the screen with the same ease as before.

But...I guess I can tell you. But don't tell anyone,Cus it really is. Kinda sad too. But not crying sad. Like 'wow really' sad. 'Kay?

He winks and your mind goes blank for a long moment.

You nod on reflex, trying to gather your wits again.

For a moment you forgot just what he was even talking about.

Uh...well actually I can't pronounce it the right way, It Japanese, but it's one of those cute dating simulators... Three of them actually...But they're so fun, and they're always there. I think I still have screen shots, do you wanna see? Wait no. Of course not. Sorry. I'm talking too much again, huh?

You stare at him for a few moments.

Then stand, quickly shaking your head.

Never being in one place for too long must have been just as lonely as always being alone.

It wasn't like he really stayed somewhere long enough to make friends.

And if he did he'd just end up leaving again.

Maybe that's why he was so quick to create the illusion that you'd actually be going around the world with him.

All his rambling was just a way for him to try and cut out all the awkwardness of when you first meet someone and build a meaningful relationship as quickly as possible before he was whisked away again.

If he was really as loaded as he made it sound, then you were sure it couldn't be too hard to find someone to take care of him while Claude was away.

While you didn't want to see any pictures of the fantasy life Alois lived, the more he talked, the more you learned about him. It was easier to listen than it would be if Alois was trying harder to get you to talk about yourself.

No. Not at all. Its...cute. I think. You can talk as much as you want.

Y-you think I'm cute? Nobody's ever called me cute before...well a real person.

He clears his throat and drops back onto your bed again.

His arm brushes against yours as he gets comfortable.

You had expected him to say something else, but he didn't.

The silence between you grows, but it wasn't uncomfortable like you thought it would have been.

It was peaceful.

You look towards the window trying to think of something to reassure him, but spot Tex's beat up truck pulling up to the house instead.

Normally you'd be happy to see him, but you didn't know how you were going to get rid of him without sounding pushy.

My uncle's here.

Oh.

Alois stands with a sigh, pulling out his phone again with a troubled look on his face.

He sighs when you stand then does the same.

Claude's looking for me anyway.

He clears his throat and bounds down the stairs in front of you with a coy smirk.

I didn't exactly tell him I was leaving. That's terrible. I know but...It's fun messing with him sometimes. And I actually brought my phone this time. Last time I didn't even do that.

He giggles and opens the door when Tex rings, he was home when I snuck out too so it was even worse.

He pauses then quickly adds, Sorry. I didn't mean to answer that. I think I got a little too much at home. Let me know how that robot goes. It sounds super cool. I maybe I could come see it.

He pauses to slip his shoes on, gazing expectantly at you while Tex wiggles his eye brows suggestively.

You open your mouth to respond, but Tex did it for you, of course you can.

You should come help us build it.

Really?

Alois turns to Tex, excitement sparkling in his eyes, but he was already half-way down the stairs when Tex replied, Of course.

Angel will tell you when.

I'll try then! Bye Angel!

He starts skipping down the sidewalk then backtracks long enough to tell Tex it was nice to meet him, before bounding off again.

Are you sure that's okay? I mean...shouldn't you be trying to keep this a secret?

Tex shrugs, herding you inside. He's just a kid. I doubt he going to think anything about building a robot with his cousin and uncle. Would you be? No, I suppose not. Then it's settled. Now down to business...

Angel and the resistance

Tex let's you into the apartment in time to hear Nat swear loudly then toss his controller aside and run his fingers through his hair.

Alois giggles and sidles up to him, glancing at the TV then at Nat.

You follow Alois after Tex gives you an encouraging nudge then heads down the hall. What're you playing?

Apocalypse 3.

That's the...zombie one right?

Nat groans in response, then looks over at you, his brow furrowing slightly. It's Saturday?'

You nod as Alois picks up the controller and drops onto the couch beside Nat.

He pats a spot next to him for you, and waits until you had joined him.

That must be why Mary was lecturing this morning.

What a pain.

Alois smiles.

I hear moms are like that.

Nat didn't bother correcting Alois, instead he rubs his face with his hands. Take her.

I can't do that.

Besides, I have Claude.

Alois rests his head on your shoulder and presses the start button.

You weren't sure if you were supposed to push him off or let him stay.

In the end he ended up moving himself.

Nat frowns slightly as Alois zig zags through an abandoned mall, slicing through zombies with more ease than he must have been having.

In a matter of minutes he accomplished what Nat couldn't at least all morning.

How'd you do that? I didn't get it at first either.

But if you go in slashing it triggers the hoard.

You have to snipe them off.

He stands and adds in a patronizing tone, which is hard with a pistol.

How have you not gotten that yet?

I got it ages ago.

I'm a tank so...

Oh.

That explains it.

I've never really tried that.

Sneaking around is way more fun, plus its fun to leave a runner alive then run around and collect drops while it chases you.

Right...

Nat's brow furrows in confusion when Alois hands the controller back and wanders around the living room, then eventually into the kitchen and back.

You should add me.

'Course I don't play that much anymore.

It's a pain getting stuff like that onto a plane these days.

Tag.

Arachnid Tamer. No space.

Tilde after wards.

Nat pointedly shoves his glasses higher on the bridge of his nose.

Right...

Say have you played Fantasy?

No.

That franchise is highly overrated.

Oh...

Alois trails off and drops back on to the couch, resting his head on your shoulder before realizing what he was doing and sitting up.

So where's your cousin?

You just met him.

Alois turns to Nat, thinking for a moment before asking, Are we going to build a robot or what? Although I'm not very hands on, I just got my nails done. They're purple. I think I'll watch.

Nat ignores Alois, melting into the couch.

Later.

Alois didn't seem to hear him, he was too busy studying his freshly manicured nails.

He frowns at a small, barely noticeable chip when Tex comes back and studies you.

Nat, list? Nat frees his phone from his pocket with one hand, the sends him a Tex.

He saves before standing.

It needs to be those, no 'almost'.

It won't work.

I'm not a miracle worker.

Bad enough half these things are rusted or modded by some half-assed kids.

What are we?

We aren't anything.

I know what I'm doing.

Alois nods in acceptance and follows Nat into the kitchen after Tex leaves with Mary.

He didn't turn any of the lights on, but he navigated through his rough sketches perfectly in the gloom.

Alois slides onto the counter behind you, taking a few selfies with his tongue sticking out before watching you and Nat.

While Alois floated in the background you handed Nat tools when he asked for them...or rather pointed and snapped his fingers impatiently.

He had been at it for half an hour before realizing how dark it was and asking to nobody in particular, why is it so dark? Alois slides to the floor and throws open the curtains in the living room.

Say, did you two hear? He pauses to see he at least had your attention before continuing.

They say that a demons been doing those killings and that's why they all decided to come back and poke their noses into this.

I say they should have kept a better eye on them in the first place.

I mean, how do you not notice you left somebody behind here? They must not be very organized if they can lose somebody.

I bet they know who's doing it too.

They're terrible.

We should impeach them!

Nat snorts and rolls his eyes, but doesn't offer any comment.

You could tell the last part was more of a joke than him trying to be serious.

I don't think that's how it works... Alois pouts, skipping over to your side and peeking over your shoulder.

You're probably right...but still. Something needs to happen.

He leans over your other shoulder.

Something big.

He rests his hands on your shoulders and presses his cheek against your back for a moment.

You tense in confusion.

Eventually you would get used to him being all touchy feely, but today wasn't that day.

I'm gonna join the resistance.

It's overrated.

You glare at Nat, who keeps his face withing millimeters of the end of his soldering iron.

It was a wonder he didn't burn himself.

His hands were a lot steadier than they looked.

You think? Alois pulls away from you and goes to Nat's side.

Yes.

What can a bunch of humans hope to do against a demon? One would be enough to wipe out a small army.

A bunch of ill-prepared morons would be child's play.

Well...wouldn't the church be able to do something? Alois thoughtfully taps his chin, glancing towards the sky.

I mean, they've been fighting evil since forever right? No.

Alois frowns, folding his arms over his chest.

His playful, flirty nature, didn't mix well with Nat's no nonsense, but you were surprised he wasn't ignoring him entirely by now.

Or banished him into the living room with his xBox.

What do you mean no? Don't you think the Vatican would have already done something by now?

Get real.

This isn't the same as a demonic possession.

The devil himself is walking among us.

They obviously would care about something like this because it would put them back at the pinnacle of power if they purged the world of them.

They can't do anything, so they remain silent.

Hmm...I never thought of that. Your as smart as you look then.

As are you.

You look to Alois, but he doesn't pick up on the back handed compliment, then he genuinely thanks Nat.

Nat fixes his glasses again then goes back to treating you as his assistant.

Laptop.

Where's that? My room.

Which is?

Nat huffs and straightens.

The first one.

You put your hands up in surrender and Alois throws his hands up and enthusiastically exclaims that he wanted to come too.

Nat rolls his eyes again and goes back to soldering wires to a circuit board.

You take a shot and open the first door on the right hand side.

The windows having black out curtains taped over them gave it away.

Alois bounds in, circling around the room and opening nearly every drawer in sight.

What are you doing? Being nosy.

Tactfully.

I mean, laptop could be any- is this a limited edition Pluto Princess figurine! I've been looking every where for one of these! Don't touch that! Alois recoils from the bookcase and looks towards the door.

He laughs nervously and bounds over to the desk, opening more drawers.

There were a lot more little figurines on the bookshelf, along with actual books in a lot more languages than English.

There were several boxes of games in one corner, along with some older gaming consoles.

Found it!

You takes Nat's hefty laptop from Alois in fear that he would accidentally drop it, and have him lead the way out of Nat's room, firmly shutting the door behind you.

Nat doesn't thank you, simply opens it and hooks up the circuit board to a few exposed wires sticking out of the back.

You didn't think that was very safe, but you kept your mouth shut.

I didn't know you've seen Pluto Princess.

That's one of my favorite shows.

Cerberus is the just about the cutest thing ever he can come save me any time.

Alois blushes and swishes the hem of his over-sized shirt back and forth as if he was a princess.

Nat ignored him, and changed the subject.

Ask Tex if your that keen on getting yourself killed.

Hm? Cerberus didn't turn evil. Wait was there a new special! No don't tell me. I don't want to know, the last one was terrible...

You can feel Nat's irritation and he falls quiet.

You force out a smile and take Alois' hands to stop is rambling.

His cheeks turn red, and he tilts his head to one side, a small, shy smile coming to his lips.

Ask Tex if your serious about joining up.

We can use all the help we can get.

Really? Alois throws himself into your arms then drops to the floor.

"Now I get to spend more time with you too! I'm gonna be the best. Writing in invisible ink and courier-ing...things... Is that a word? Or is like courier its own...verb? That's what those are right?

He keeps babbling on while Nat starts coding.

From how hard he presses the keys you could tell he was getting frustrated with Alois, so you start to lead him to the living room, but he stops when his phone goes off and opens a message.

He groans then turns, nearly smacking his head into yours.

He giggles and takes a step back.

I have to go. Claude's here... but...can you pretty pretty please talk to your uncle for me? I'll owe you for forever.

He takes your hands into his again and gazes into your eyes.

You clear your throat to hide some of your embarrassment, and weakly nod, unable to find the right words.

Alois hugs you again before bounding off, calling one final goodbye to Nat before leaving.

The door had barely closed before Nat commented, that boy is an idiot.

Alois and Ciel

Ciel! You wince when Alois' shrill voice carries into your room from down the hall.

His appearance before you seemed pointless since he had been spamming you with messages all afternoon.

At least you hadn't bothered to read any of them.

You pick up the book sitting idle on the coffee table and flip to a random page, knowing you'd need something to focus on other than Alois' trying to play games.

Guess what? He slams the door to your room and bounds over to stand in front of your chair, brimming with excitement.

You don't look up and turn the page.

Alois frowns, and folds his arms over his chest.

Ciel, you're always so mean to me.

I've been doing a good job helping you and you can't even be bothered to text me back every now and then.

Your phone sitting on the table beside what remained of afternoon tea was proof enough.

It wasn't just Alois, you didn't text anyone back.

Although you were especially pointed when it came to Alois.

I didn't hear it.

You can feel him glare at you when your phone chimes.

He snatches your book from your hand tosses it aside.

It falls to the floor with a thud.

Several pages lay bent beneath the thick binding.

Don't lie to me.

I can take you Ciel. Or I can have your precious fallen Angel do it for me.

Anger pricks at the palms of your hands as you start to rise from the chair, but Alois roughly shoves you back and climbs into your lap, pinning you there.

His eyes flash dangerously when he smirks and leans closer, his face hovering a fraction of an inch from yours.

Now that I have your attention. Guess?

I don't guess. Tell me or leave.

He rolls his eyes, leaning back and resting his weight on your knees.

I'm in, and their leader is coming to New York. You better act fast Ciel. You're only going to get one chance to strike them down. If you mess this up it's all over. I can't keep this up forever you know. When? Where? Who? You keep claiming you have things and then do a half-assed job explaining yourself. I could get this done myself in half the time it takes you because your too busy fucking around do get anything done properly.

Alois smirks, folding his arms over his chest and leaning forward again.

That's where your wrong. You couldn't do this because he already knows you. Since you feel the need to keep stroking your ego all these years it's not hard to figure out you're one of them. How many press conferences have you been to Ciel? If I recall, you were left to take a bullet when things started getting dicey at one of those schools of his. You need me, Ciel. I think you better not forget that because I'd sell you out if it meant making you mine.

You'd get us both killed.

That's fine by me. You can die knowing you brought it upon yourself.

The door opens when Alois was dangerously close to trying to kiss you.

If anybody is going to die, you incessant pest, it's going to be you. Nobody places a hand on Ciel without me knowing.

Alois glares at Sebastian and leans back, but doesn't climb off of you.

If I'm so annoying then why do you always come crawling to me for help? The way I see it, you two would be useless without me. I don't have to do anything and now I'm not telling you a damn thing.

Alois stands as you started to shove him backwards, he heads for the door, sidling around Sebastian.

You can figure it out yourself.

Angel and the Resistance

Alois had been in a rather bad mood since Sunday, but you couldn't really figure out why.

Not that you had actually asked.

For all you knew there was nothing actually wrong, you hadn't seen him in person since Saturday.

Between you going to school and all his classes and functions he went to with Claude, your schedules had conflicted quite a bit, but he showed up at your house Friday minutes after you had gotten home from school.

Did I surprise you, Angel?

He smiles cheerfully with his arms folded behind his back.

You almost expected him to throw himself into your arms again.

You were thankful he didn't.

At first you had a hard time figuring out that he was actually standing on your front porch.

Y-yeah...how long have you been here?

Alois shrugs and wanders inside after you unlock the front door. We were supposed to go shopping, but Claude tricked me so he could get me fitted for a suit then I sort of ditched him afterwards. It's ugly. And he made me get a blazer. I don't wear those they never fit right.

He frowns, wandering through your living room and plopping down on the couch.

You had told him to make himself at home, but it didn't take him very long to get comfortable.

You drop your bag off at the kitchen table then sit across from Alois.

Anyway, are you ready? This weekend's going to be a blast! I'm going to be the best secret agent ever.

He rolls off the poses, pretending to adjust the tie he wasn't wearing.

Monkey Penny, I'm in. The case is in sight. Of course, I don't really like James Bond. It's kind of overrated. And who are the first 6 agents? Unless it's explained somewhere.

You don't just start with seven.

You prematurely end his misconceived spy fantasy.

Sorry, but it's not going to be nearly that interesting. We're just going to sit around and talk. But spy talk.

So it's fun.

If you say so...

You weren't as sure of that as Alois was, but you couldn't bring yourself to rain on his parade, especially when it finally looked like he was back to normal.

Do you think I should have changed? I mean it's not every day you meet a warrior.

I'm sure that doesn't matter.

Alois plants his hands on his hips.

Of course it matters. How you present yourself is very important.

He pointedly leans forward and straightens the collar your your shirt, and undoes the top button before stepping back again.

By the way, can I sleep over?

I guess, assuming we come back here after.

Alois claps his hands together and bounces off, but he's distracted by his phone chiming several times and ends up texting someone instead.

He must have had some friends if he got this many texts, or maybe they all wrote like him and sent message after message to get one point across.

He shuts his phone off after typing some message and sprawls out on the floor.

Man, he's so annoying. I do a guy a favor and he goes around ignoring me when I come to collect. I just wanted somebody to go to the movies with and he keeps blowing me off. Its two hours and he does even less than I do!

Don't you know people like that? He digs his fingers into the carpet before you can respond, then adds, My carpets are this soft.

It feels nice.

You nod, slightly confused at his abrupt redirect.

Did he not want you to respond now?

Not that you knew what he was talking about anyway.

Or rather who.

You preferred doing things by yourself.

You were the only one you could rely on.

When someone didn't do something they said they would, you were at a point where you didn't bother getting upset by it, whether it was intentional or not, you had stopped expecting them to actually do it.

Alois keeps stroking the carpet and eventually you take it as he wanted you to join him on the floor.

It wasn't as comfortable as he made it out to be, but he seemed happy enough.

Who? Blue.

Well I call him blue, cus of his hair. It's really cool actually, I'd never be able to do something like that. Anyway I met him in...Massachusetts I think? But he's here for the weekend and he keeps blowing me off so I'm not talking to him anymore. I'd rather spend it with you anyway, he's kind of a jerk.

Alois turns his phone over in his hand, as if he was regretting turning it off.

Silence falls between you.

Cars drive by and the clock on the wall counts off the seconds.

Eventually he does turn it back on, only to check on his virtual harem.

He shows you pictures and while you couldn't understand why he liked it so much, you nodded attentively every so often and helped him pick an outfit for one of his dates.

You turned on the TV at some point and let Alois pick out a movie, although it wasn't very good.

When Sam showed up to pick you up, you were half asleep.

Alois climbs into the back seat of the car and comments, this is a nice car. You have good taste.

Thank you.

Sam smiles at him in the rear view window.

Alois and Prince hit it off, even though he was still ignoring you.

It didn't take much.

Alois said he liked his hair, Prince said he liked his nails and know they were fifteen minutes in to a discussion about good places to go shopping.

The needle on the speedometer was creeping closer to seventy as you left the city, eventually making it well over that.

Sam turned on the radio in an attempt to silence the chatty pair, and it worked, since Alois exclaimed that he loved this song.

His excitement was short lived when he got another text from blue.

He glared at his phone but didn't bother reading it and texted Claude instead.

The closer you got to the harbor the more nervous you got, but Sam flew by them all and kept going.

Prince flipped through the stations, then settled back on the one Sam had chosen with a sigh.

I told you you should have got the bluetooth one.

You just want that one so you can hack into it and play more of that crap you call music.

No.

You wouldn't have this problem of sitting in silence or listening to garbage.

I could have put it in for half the cost but no, you needed to get new speakers too.

I did!

No you didn't! I drive this more than you do!

That's because you hide the keys!

Alois leans forward and rest his elbows against the middle console.

You should get your money back on these speakers, they're not the best.

Prince smirks triumphantly and Sam slams on the brakes.

Alois nearly slides off the seat as climbs out and makes Prince drive.

Did I say something?

Prince drops into the drivers seat with a coy smirk on his face.

Sam had barely gotten into the car before he was peeling out, leaving behind a cloud of dust and the smell of burning rubber.

Nothing at all!

Angel, your friend better watch out.

You're just mad because he likes me better than he likes you.

I like everyone. Well almost everyone, but I don't talk about them.

The rest of the trip passes rather uneventfully.

Alois was the one to fall asleep this time, but he jolted awake when Prince drifts into the empty space just beside Tex's truck.

Another few inches and he would have smashed into it.

It was also impossible to get out on the drivers side.

Way to go, Princess.

Why do I let you do anything?

Prince shoves Sam out by planting one of his boots on her bottom.

She whips around and drags him out into the dirt.

Keep it up lover boy. Just you wait.

The second you get cleared I'm going to put you right back in the hospital.

I'd like to see you try.

Prince stands, gracefully wiping dirt from his pants and you close the door back.

Teeter pokes his head out and waves, Nice of you to finally show up.

Blame Sammy, she can't drive.

We got lost twice.

After I gave you the keys.

I don't remember that.

Prince ducks into the shack before Sam can punch him.

Alois giggles, taking you hand in his and dragging you inside.

His excitement was starting to rub off on you, and it melted away any of the remaining worries you had about this.

Like you had said earlier, you were just talking...more or less.

The rickety screen door slams shut behind you, and Alois drags you to the outskirts of the group gathered in the center of he room.

He squeezes your hand then releases you in favor of hiding behind you.

Alois rests his hands on your shoulders instead, but he still hummed with excitement.

Mary turns away from the board she had been looking over with a tall woman, then nudges her and she turns as well.

You made it then.

She looked at you while she talked, but Sam was the one who responded.

You couldn't quite wrap your head around why she would be talking to you already.

They must have gotten some of the things out of the way while you were still en route.

Yeah.

Prince is direction impaired.

Prince tosses his hair back and folds his arms over his chest but doesn't say anything in objection.

He was taking this a lot more serious than you thought he was going to.

So I've heard.

Who's your friend?

Alois pokes his head out from behind you, bowing in greeting, Alois, Ma'am.

Right.

She seemed less then impressed with him, and went back to whatever tangent she had been on before you arrived.

Seeing as how you're one of the few who have actually had direct contact with the enemy.

We're going to need you to offer as much insight as you possibly can.

No detail is irrelevant at this point.

The first chance they get they're going to run off again and we're stretched thin enough here as it is.

We don't have the resources to chase them around the globe.

We've narrowed down several places where they could be but-

They're staying at the Hilton.

Alois had come to stand beside you, but his statement earned a lot of curious looks.

And how would you know that?

They took all the good rooms, duh.

Unless there's a convention or something but I'm pretty sure it's them.

They pushed me to Hampton, can you believe that?

I personally prefer-

Spare me the details.

Alois pouts and folds his arms over his chest at the sudden interruption, but for all of you it was the best.

Once he got started, it was sometimes hard to get him to stop.

But now that the where is done.

It's just a matter of how.

Getting in to a hotel isn't that hard, but it's a matter of not of not drawing a lot of attention ourselves.

We're supposed to be shadows, in and out without a trace.

She stops suddenly, and her and Prince turn towards one of the windows at the same time.

A tense silence falls across the room and just about everybody reaches for their guns, excluding Mary and Sam.

Alois presses himself closer to you, even though it wasn't apparent he hadn't picked up on whatever they were noticing.

It wasn't really a sound though, it was more of a feeling.

There a heaviness to the air now, and a slight chill.

The crickets that had been chirping outside were silent now.

Sam shoves you and Alois to the floor as the front window blows out.

Shards of grass rain onto the cracked wooden floor and smoke fills your vision.

The table behind you gets thrown the the floor, and bullets fly over your head.

The door gets ripped off the hinges.

A rush of cold air hits your face as you find your legs again and drag Alois off to the side.

A few bullets hit their marks.

Wood splinters.

Shadows are visible through the thinning mist.

More bullets whiz over your head.

You couldn't recognize any of the figures standing before you, but you had a feeling that they were some of the demons you had been looking for.

One of them spots you sitting there on the floor, too dazed to really do anything, but Alois springs into action before you do.

He grabs the barrel of the gun and slams his elbow under the bulky man's rib cage.

You could hear the air forced out of his lungs as he doubles over, then he lands a final blow to his neck.

He plants his hands on his hips and beams.

I'm a black belt.

Despite his bragging, he jumps when a shot rings out just behind him, dropping to the ground while he turns in time for a body to slump to the floor.

Blood pools around the body and Alois steps back, giving his shoes a once over as the last of them was put down.

You force yourself off the ground as Alois tearfully looks down at his vibrant purple sweater with a silver spiderweb pattern printed onto it.

His reaction was almost comical given the situation, but you don't think he was doing it on purpose.

This was my favorite one! Claude got it for me! There's blood all over it, what if it stains?

Prince flips his hair back again, emerging from outside with a small handgun tucked into his belt.

Cold water and club soda. Really?

Prince nods, kicking one of the bodies as if it was going to jump up any moment.

Thankfully it didn't.

Would I lie to you?

I guess not.

Sam rolls her eyes and brushes past him, righting the table to find Tex, Mary, and Teeter crouched around their fallen leader.

Or so you thought.

When she called you forward you were hesitant to do it at first.

It took Alois nudging you forward to get you to cross the small room and kneel beside her.

It took a lot of effort to no focus on the gaping wound in her chest.

Angel...take good care of them.

What? Me?

Who else? Face it kid, this has to end with you.

But...

You stop yourself before you can finish, Prince seemed to have the same idea you did, and he wasn't going to take this lying down.

Are you insane? You want to put one of them in charge? What are we supposed to do if he has a change of heart? He's just a dumb kid.

Tex stands, working his way in between Prince and the figure collapsed onto the floor.

Go take a walk.

Tex shoves him backwards and Prince throws his hands up.

Don't think I'm coming back.

You aren't welcome back if you're going to keep acting like this.

Tex followed him out, and during their commotion, you barely heard her putting her faith in you.

You didn't even know her name and yet...she trusted you this much?

All you could do was say yes, and hope that you didn't let her down. Let all of them down for that matter.


	10. Its not over,not yet

Angel and the resistance

The ride back into the city was a long, tense one. Prince took off in Sam's car shortly after Tex told him to 'take a walk' and since Mary and Tex decided to assess the damage the assault had caused, Teeter and Sam were the only ones to bring you and Alois home. Alois had fallen asleep on your shoulder minutes into the drive, but you didn't have the heart to move him. He looked so peaceful in contrast to heavy atmosphere in the truck. Teeter didn't seem to be his usual cheerful self, and as hard as Sam had first tried, evens he couldn't lighten the mood. The radio just couldn't fill the silence, so at some point there had been the silent decision to turn it off. Although Sam had said there was nothing but 'electronic crap' on anyway. The wind thundering in through Teeter's open window was the only background noise you go to try and calm your frayed nerves. Alois had done more than you had tonight, yet somehow you were the one who was worthy of being left in charge. It didn't make any more sense to you than it probably did the others. Mary and Tex seemed to be trying harder to accept this than the others. But...at least they all hadn't flown off the handle. Before falling asleep Alois teased you while brimming with excitement, saying that he better be your co-captain because you owed him a sweater. Although you nearly had a heart attack when he told you it was nearly $600. Who the hell spent that on one piece of clothing?  
The light of the city hurt your eyes at first, and you look away from the window, unable to face your own reflection in the thin glass. "We're going to go back to my place, wouldn't want anything to happen to ya, boss."  
You stare at him for a moment, then catch him wearing a tired smile and force yourself to nod. "Okay."  
"Kiss ass."  
"Am not! If I was being a kiss ass I'd order a pizza...although that does sound good right now. The thin crust stuff though, none of that deep dish crap. If I wanted bread and cheese I'd make a sandwich."  
Sam elbows Teeter, and starts rummaging through the driver's console until finding a half decent CD and shoving it into the slot. Alois turns frowning at the droning bass filtering through the speakers and sits up, rubbing his eye with his hand. "Where are we going?"  
"Teeter's place. Unless you want to go home."  
"As if. Claude's going to have my ass as is for being out so late. No. I'll pass. If I'm getting grounded I'd rather make him worry a little longer. Plus I need a bath and...club soda was it? This is my favorite sweater. I'd resurrect that guy just to steal his wallet and kill him again...Do you think demons carry around cash or do they just charge everything? I bet their they only carry credit cards so they don't have to tip anybody..."  
You shrug. Alois still sounded a little sleepy but even so he could still chatter on without a care in the world. It was almost impressive. Sam glances at him and interjects, "Cash doesn't leave a paper trail. But they probably only carry around nothing smaller than $100 bills. Then they can't give change to anybody."  
"Oh. I never thought of that..." He thoughtfully taps his chin, then rests his head on your shoulder again. "I don't like big bills. I carry around twenties. Lots of them. Well...not now. I spent most of my allowance when we went shopping...Now am I happy I did not wear my new shoes. I really would have been mad if those got ruined."  
You had almost hear Sam roll her eyes while Teeter stifles his laughter. "No wonder you got along with princess so well. You guys are two peas in a pod. If I didn't know any better I'd say your brothers."  
Sam laughs sarcastically then offers her two cents. "More like brother and sister. I've got more balls that Prince does."  
Teeter rubs his chin thoughtfully, and a little too seriously for the subject matter. "I dunno...they're pretty big from what I hear..." Teeter glances at Sam who folds her arms over her chest and glares at him, obviously not amused.  
Alois coughs to hide his laughter, and hides his reddening face in your shoulder. "So you've checked."  
"Contrary to popular belief, I like girls. Stacked ones." He glances pointedly at Sam's chest with an impish smirk. You cover your face with your right hand and and sigh. Whatever was coming he deserved it. "You'll get there one day. Drink your milk and-  
His sentence gets cut off, followed by screeching tires and Teeter slamming on the brakes. "What the hell did-  
He stops again and you peek out to find Sam holding him by he front of his shirt in the driver's seat, fully prepared to hit him again. "No stop, I'm kidding! It was a joke, I swear!"  
He flinches when Sam brings her arm back. A satisfied smirk appeared on her face as she opens the drivers door and climbs out. "Then move. I'm driving. You get to ride in the back."  
"No! You'll kill me."  
"I'll drive slow..." Sam tucks her arms behind her back, but Teeter doesn't trust her and climbs over into the passengers seat instead, rubbing his jaw. Sam pouts, climbing back into the driver's seat and slamming the door shut. She doesn't bother putting her seat belt on while revving the engine a few times. Teeter braces himself for dear life while Alois presses himself closer to you, commenting, "Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn."  
"Damn right." Sam shifts gears and goes flying down the street. Alois laughs burying his face in his arm. You can feel the tires lift off the ground as she makes a sharp turn down a side street. Teeter looks like he's going to be sick, more from the potential of Sam destroying his truck than the probability of dying in a fiery crash. You hadn't realized you were holding your breath until Sam came to a screeching halt outside of Teeter's house. Strangely enough all the lights were out, but Shorty came wandering out in a different over sized shirt with one of the guys you vaguely recognized before. Shorty lingers in the doorway as the motion lights kicked on, awning a working his fingers through his permanently bedraggled hair. Was sleep the only thing he did?  
Teeter let you out, and you carefully climbed to the ground, while Alois took a more adventurous approach and leaps from the truck, landing several inches from you with his hands thrown in the air in some grand gesture. "Ta-dah!"  
You roll your eyes while Sam climbs to the ground and slams a door shut. The tall scraggly looking guy ducks back into the house as quickly as he had come, but shorty lingers, giving Alois the same, thorough once over he had give you. He smiles lazily when Alois bounds over and introduces himself, although shorty ignores him for the time being and calls to Teeter, "Where they hell'd you get this one? Did Prince finally jump ship or something?"  
Alois pouts, folding his arms over his chest while Teeter bundles you all into the house with a wary glance around. "I hope not."  
Sam rolls her eyes, closing the door and clicking on the lights. The living room was cleaner than last time, and it didn't smell as strongly of pot, but you could still tell the rest of his gang took to it during their free time when he wasn't home. The tall guy comes back to join the group, lingering in the doorway with his thumbs hooked into his pockets. Although he contributed nothing to the conversation. He looked pretty out of it. "I should only be so lucky."  
Shorty's eyes widen, and he darts into his room to retrieve his phone, demanding to know what happened while simultaneously coming up with his own theories until he had stopped talking and was engrossed whatever conversation he was having via text. It reminded you a lot of Alois in some ways. "Well? Tell me? I want to know everything. Well not everything. I don't care when that kid showed up, no offense. Unless it's important. Is it? Important I mean." His eyes shine, but he doesn't look up from the screen. He asks for Alois number, and he cheerfully gives it to him while him and Alois have some brief conversation consisting nothing more than weird sounds and acronyms that made no sense to anyone other then them. Your head was spinning by time shorty looked up and became annoyed that nobody was saying anything. "Well? Why're you all standing' there staring at me like I sprouted a fucking third head?"  
Sam rubs her temples then explains everything as quickly as she can for everyone's sake. "There was an incident. Angel's in charge now and Prince got mad and left. I hope he doesn't come back."  
Shorty smacks Teeter's arm, his voice rising in pitch and his hits getting increasingly harder as he shoots off questions faster than anybody could answer, punctuated with 'shut up' and 'no way'. Alois nods, and they start talking on top of one another again before Sam gets fed up. "Enough! You two are like an entire pack of teenage girls! If you want to have gossip hour go outside."  
Alois is the first to stop talking. He shuffles his feet and looks down, his cheeks turning red as he wraps his hands around your arm and hides behind you. Shorty looks annoyed, and glares at Sam. "Well excuse me, but not everybody gets an incident report you know. Everyone around here's a bunch of fucking pot heads. Nobody ever tells me anything and you aren't the boss of me, Angel is. And-  
He stops when his phone rings, and answers it, turning sharply and wandering down the hall to his room. The door slams shut with an air of finality and Teeter immediately head to the kitchen and you follow. "I need a drink, you kids want anything?"  
"I'm fourteen."  
"Your point? Shit I started drinking when I was-  
Sam punches him in the arm and takes a beer out for herself then lists off what was in there, "and tap water."  
Nothing sounded overly appealing. You weren't even sure you wanted to eat anything either, and Alois was still hiding behind you, smarting from Sam's verbal lashing he had just received. You assume he didn't want anything and shook your head. "No thanks."  
"Right." Teeter takes Sam's beer as she cracks it open, "thanks darlin'." Sam rolls her eyes and grabs another one as Teeter leads you into the living room and folds the couch out. He places the TV remote on the counter then leaves you and Alois standing there long enough to get blankets of pillows. Shorty comes barreling out of his room as Teeter's about to lock the door, dressed in very tight pants and a mesh shirt. "I'm out. Don't wait up."  
"I wasn't going to. Bring your keys."  
Shorty waves him off, zipping up some shoes that gave him a good four inches. "Don't wait up usually implies I'm not coming back any time soon." He slips out the door after checking his pockets and Teeter closes and locks the door, staring blankly at you and Alois as if he had no idea what he was supposed to do. He runs his fingers through his hair and looks around, "do you need me to read a story or something?"  
"No."  
Teeter looks relieved and clears his throat. "Good. Well...night then. Try not to destroy the place." He starts heading down the hall then comes back to firmly demand that you not smoke any pot, not that you had any or were going to try to if you did.  
You were left alone again. Alois had already made the bed and was sprawled out on the right side, scrolling through movie channels before settling on some foreign film. You lay down beside him and somehow manage to fall asleep before him.

You had been up for about half an hour when Alois finally wakes and hastily unwraps himself from you. Just as you had, he noticed muffled voices coming from down the hall and rolls to the floor. He stretches and jerks his chin down the hall with an impish smirk. You fall out of bed in your rush to stop his as he bounds down the hall, and latch onto his wrist halfway down the hall then sharply whisper, "What are you doing?"  
"Being nosy." You sigh, but at least he was being honest about it. You just didn't feel right about eavesdropping on them. Even if you hadn't, something told you you wouldn't like what you heard. Alois didn't see it like that, on some level he found this all a game, and he wanted to be included. "You're in charge now, right? So you can do whatever you want. If you wanna bust in there then you can and nobody can get mad."  
"Yeah but, that doesn't make it right."  
Alois pouts, slipping his hand into yours and towing you down the hall, much against your will. He throws the door open and cheerfully jumps into the room. "Morning everyone."  
You wince as everybody turns to face you and try hiding yourself behind Alois. Since you were bigger than him, it didn't work very well. You keep your eyes fixed on the floor as Alois releases you. "What? Did I interrupt something? Kid or not you really can't expect me to sleep all day. I do things."  
"I bet you do." Sam elbows Prince as his sharp retort, but you got the feeling he wasn't trying to be mean to Alois. It was clear he still wasn't happy with you and he was going to take it out on anybody.  
"Whats' that supposed to mean?" He plants his hands on his hips then asks, "Say hot water or cold water for this thing? Sometimes that makes a difference."  
"Cold." You can feel his eyes on you and, ironically, felt your blood run cold. "Thanks, you really are the best."  
Teeter rubs the back of his neck. There was a bruise on the side of his face where Sam had punched him yesterday, and it looked like he hadn't slept. Hell, none of them looked like they had slept. And they all seemed frozen in whatever mood they had been in when Alois barged in. Mary looked pained, while Prince, Teeter, Sam and Tex seemed ready to start a brawl. Shorty seemed bored with the whole thing, probably since he had drained the subject dry of anything after gossiping all night, leaving a couple of Teeter's guys who had stumbled in looking on from the back of the room hopelessly lost. But at this point it wasn't hard to figure out what they had been talking about.  
Not knowing what you were supposed to say, you pull away from the door and head back down the hall and start channel surfing. They were talking again, Prince, Shorty and Alois didn't bother even trying to be discreet about it, eventually drawing the others to do the same, although at a normal volume. "It doesn't matter what I think, that's how it goes. You don't ask questions, you do." Tex was trying his best to be the voice of reason, something usually left to Mary. It was a little unnerving in all honesty.  
"Have you really thought about what we've come to? There's a reason nobody takes us seriously. We aren't organized. We don't plan. And now you're just going to roll over and wag your tail when some French-  
"She wasn't French."  
There was something almost comical about Alois interjection, but nobody laughed. You could imagine Prince rolling his eyes as he picked up where he left off. Or tried to. "What would you rather me do? Run my mouth off and start a mutiny? You're the one talking nonsense. It doesn't matter what I think. Or what you think. Or any of us think. At the end of the day we all want the same thing and if you think you can do a better job then go and do a better job!"  
"You wouldn't last a week without me and you know it!"  
"Don't think so highly of yourself! I can find somebody with twice the skill as you and causes half the problems."  
"Good. Do it. And you know what? I will. I'll take my guys and do a better fucking job than any of you idiots and then I'll be the one laughing when you come crawling back with your tail between your legs." Prince storms out. You hear the back door slamming shut beside him. "You didn't have to yell at him..." You got the feeling that Mary was probably the only one who believe one hundred percent that you could do this, but she was going to have a hell of a hard time convincing the others of that. At least, not with how you were now. That didn't mean she wasn't going to try her hardest. Someone clears their throat then you hear Shorty quietly add, "I'm out too. This isn't worth dying for. I mean, nothings really changed for me since they took over. I can still sleep all day and do whatever I want so, what's the point?"  
The silence stretched on as Shorty retreated to his room. Every so often you could hear a drawer slam shut, but he didn't leave while you were still there...unless he slipped out the window. Everybody came out of the room at once, but Alois stood in front of you, a little too cheerful given the circumstances. You hadn't even been in charge for a full twenty-four hours and things were already starting to fall apart around you. From the sounds of it, it was going to happen one way or another but, you would rather it happened when you weren't the one supposed to be preventing this. At least, that's what it felt like. "Mary's going to take us home." Alois stands in front of you for a moment, before reaching for you and pulling you up. "Or you can come to the hotel with me. I can get room service. Or we can go out. Or I can hang out at your house. Or...uh...I don't know. Anything. You don't have to go home but you can't stay here." He beams, and you manage a small tired smile.  
"I want to be alone for a little while."  
Alois nods, then him you and Mary head outside and she brings you to your respective places. Although she dropped Alois off first so she could try to comfort you. It worked for a little while, but when she was long gone you still couldn't help but to feel that this was all your fault. Worse yet, there wasn't anything you could think of to fool yourself into believing otherwise.

Alois Ciel and Sebastian

Alois bounded into his hotel room humming cheerfully. He hadn't even closed the door back fully when he was calling to Claude. He freezes in the doorway when he finds Sebastian and Ciel sitting around the coffee table as well ."Aw, Ciel did you miss me? I bet that little bloodbath would have went better if you didn't forsake me."  
Ciel glowers at Alois as he strips his blood-stained sweater off and heads into the bathroom to fill the sink with cold water. "That's not why I'm here. And I didn't plan that. I wasn't going to kill anybody. Nobody is any good dead. At least not before you break them."  
Alois folds himself into Claude's lap and frowns at his cracked glasses. "What did you do? Did you forget where they were and sit on them again?" Under normal circumstances, Sebastian might had cracked a smile, but Alois' cheerful demeanor was the same as a slap in the face. He hadn't been there to see their master fly off the handle. Bodies disposed of, things covered up. While he was off playing soldier they had actual work that needed to be done. One of them could have easily been reduced to a pile of ash, or left sitting in a bloody heap on one of the cream colored chairs in the lounge. "What?" Alois pulls out his phone to make sure he hadn't missed any texts or calls. He hadn't. "You couldn't even be bothered to tell me if it was that important. This isn't going to work if you keep leaving me out of everything Ciel! Did you hit Claude? I'll do a lot more than-  
Claude pacifies Alois by pinning him to his chest. Alois frowns, pulling off his glasses to examine them. He bends the frame a little so they were as crooked before slipping them back on his angular face while Sebastian carefully explains what had happened. "Lucifer threw a fit when he heard of the 'blood bath' as you put it. He killed a few people, called us all incompetent, threw things, threatened to rip up the treaty just so he could send us all to death and start over. Along with a few other choice words that I choose not to repeat."  
"Then I'm going to hurt him for putting hands on my Claude." His sing song was a little unnerving considering he was lovingly smoothing Claude's hair and fixing his collar while promising to spill blood. They all knew he was going to do his hardest to do it too. As far as Alois was concerned, a broken pair of glasses was the same as the poor bellhop who had been mixed among the ashes in the fire place. "You'd better keep a very close eye on your charge as well. He's on the hit list."  
"Or sell him out." Alois twists in Claude's lap, reaching for a cookie left over from morning tea. "You'd know if you weren't being mean Ciel." Alois pauses, munching his cookie and wriggling around until he was comfortable and could bury his face in Claude's neck while keeping one of his arms wrapped around him. Sebastian glares at him throughout the process. Alois wasn't the only one ready to spill blood. "Angel is in charge now. A lot of them aren't happy with it because he's a kid. They're going to tear themselves apart from the inside out and getting rid of him would be the final nail in the coffin. Well their coffin. I'm not dying. I don't even have the newest galaxy yet."  
Ciel rolls his eyes and stands, signaling Sebastian to do the same. "We can't be discreet about it. He needs to be brought in and dealt with properly. This isn't just going to go away."  
Alois throws his arms around Claude's neck as Ciel and Sebastian make their way to the door. "I'm already doing dirty work Ciel. Why don't you get off that nice ass of yours and do some work? You'll get fat if you sit around eating candy all day."  
Ciel glares at Alois from the doorway, earning a cheeky smirk in response. "Worry about yourself Alois, if I go down I'm taking you with me."

Angel and Mr heartly

You found yourself sitting in Mr. Heartly's room long after school had let out. The conversation you had with Mary yesterday weighed heavily in your mind. The way Prince had talked you thought the last thing they were prepared for was an attack on a much larger scale than the other day, but she had told you otherwise. Well actually she told you that they were almost ready for a final battle, but they hadn't told everyone yet. Herself and a few other section leaders, and Nat (although it wasn't her decision, he stole her phone when he thought she was keeping secrets from him). Something like that shouldn't have gone unpunished, but considering Nat didn't like anybody but himself, it wasn't like he was going to tell anyone. That was how Mary figured it at least, and you agreed with her. Unless all his time spent playing games was a front for something that nobody noticed. Mr. Heartly was chipping through a stack of papers he needed to grade while you stared out the window. You could feel his eyes on you every so often, but left him to break the easy silence that had fallen across the room. "Something bothering you?"  
"Sort of, it's hard to explain."  
There's a long pause as Mr. Heartly frowns at something a student had written down. He pulls off his glasses and pinches the bridge of his nose before asking, "the resistance giving you a run for you money yet?"  
"No." Another silence. You eyes widen as you realize how easily the answer had rolled off your tongue. It was supposed to be a secret wasn't it? Yet you just told the first person who had asked. Some leader you were turning out to be. First a bunch of guys jump ship and now this. You should have just let Alois take the job from you.  
Mr. Heartly chuckles, putting his glasses back on and capping his red pen. "That's good. I knew putting you in charge would be a good thing. You may not think it yet but, you're cut out for it. You've got a good head on your shoulders."  
"Wait, you were the one who did that? But that would mean..." "I didn't send in those demons if that's what you're asking. That was a very unfortunate coincidence, but yes, I was the one who suggested you have more responsibility. And yes, you would be correct in thinking that I am the one in charge of this whole thing. Well not all of it, that's just absurd, but America, and parts of Canada. There's not too much to do up there really, they are quite peaceful."  
"Why?" Out of all the fragmented thoughts rushing through your head, you were a little disappointed that that is what chose to come out. His laughter caught you off guard and you quickly add, "I didn't mean it like that."  
"It's quite alright. Asking questions is the best way to learn. There are a lot of reasons actually. Why is a very broad question, and I'm not sure I can give you one answer. There's more to it than fate, at least I believe so. But over the years I have come to put my trust in you, and for now I think that should be more than enough. I can offer you guidance if you so should need it, but you should have faith in yourself. That is the only way others will come to do the same."

Ciel Sebastian and Alois

"Why do I have to do this again?" Sebastian lingers in front of the desk he had stuck you with. You were the only important looking sucker he could rope into dealing with one of the students from the school. He reaches out and straightens your collar with a tired smile.  
"Because I have more pressing issues to deal with and you have terrible reflexes. I don't intend on spending my evening picking glass out of your hair and tending your wounds. Lucifer knows you aren't as coy as you pretend to be." You roll your eyes and lean back in the chair, trying to look as bored and in-authoritative as possible. But it didn't work. You had spent far too much time being in charge to be able to fool anyone into thinking otherwise. Sebastian kisses your forehead. "I'll send him in."  
"I want cake."  
"I'll make you two." He leaves the door ajar and heads down the hall. "He'll see you now, just down the hall. Try not to make a fool of yourself, he's very busy. I can't guarantee you'll come out unscathed if you anger him."  
"Yes, sir." You roll your eyes again, shifting in the chair so you could prop your feet up on the desk. His response bordered on sarcasm, as if he didn't believe you would dare lay hands on him. You weren't about it, and despite being far older than he, you were certain that he would be larger than you. Even if it was only by a hair. The child bursts into the room and drops into the chair across from you, his nervousness hidden behind a broad smirk. His overconfidence was irritating and he hadn't even opened his mouth yet. You were already tempted to throw one of the heavy volumes Sebastian was already reading at him. Technically he had already given you permission to do much more than that. "I'm here with some information I believe you would find quite-  
"Out with it already. I don't have time to listen to you blather on in that ridiculous tone. You aren't nearly old or smart enough to speak in such a way."  
His eyes widen and he clears his throat, sitting straighter and avoiding all eye contact. "Right. Sorry. So, like I was staying after school and-  
"Faster."  
He opens and closes his mouth a couple more times. You had almost forgotten what it felt like to have someone wrapped around your little finger. It was quite enjoyable. "I overheard some freak kid-  
"Name."  
"I don't know. He some angry little freak. He's been hanging out with this tiny blond kid lately, talk about a couple-" You give his a sharp glare and he falls silent, dropping his eyes to his hands that were folded in his lap. You were almost certain he was talking about Angel, unless Alois was hanging out with someone else at the school...or another flamboyant blond had started skulking about. He flinches when you open up the closest book and throw back the cover, trying to get a feel for heavy it was. Certainly heavy enough to leave a mark. He inches the chair backwards and spits out the rest of what he should have began with. "Mr. Heartly said he was leading a faction of the resistance."  
He stands and bows, an awkward movement which nearly caused him to smack his forehead on the desk. "Took you long enough. Now go. Someone will investigate the matter."  
"Thank you for you time, and I trust you will remember me when-  
You throw the book, missing him by millimeters. It leaves a small hole in the wall that would undoubtedly be left on Lucifer's tab. What was a patch job compared to incinerated furniture? "Children should be happy from simply being allowed seen let alone heard. You would do well to remember that." He was already down the hall though, you weren't entirely sure he had heard you. Times really haven't changed. Even now anybody would betray someone in hopes of building a name for themselves. Even if he had left a name and had a more prominent outlook than a bastard waiting in the wings for nothing, you wouldn't have bothered.  
For the sake of having nothing better to do, and the child having left you in a particularly good mood, you text Alois. A child has just told me something very interesting.  
Ooo, what pray tell? Does it have to do with my little pet~ :/  
Guess, Alois. It's your turn to play this game.  
You do love your games Ciel~ Another leader is coming to their death? Angel is going to get overthrown? We're going to war! It's been so long since I've had a good soul ;3 I didn't say that. Don't tell Claude. He'll get mad.  
You roll your eyes and lean back in the chair again. I don't care what you do. And you are close. A teacher at the school put Angel in charge. We're going to take him out. And you've been spotted spending a lot of time with Angel.  
He's my pet, Ciel~ I need to feed and walk him~ :3 and cuddle him and text him~ ;) Where were we?  
Make it look like an accident Alois. You said you were good with those now make it happen. If I'm feeling generous I'll write a report for you that'll earn you some points with Lucifer.  
More like you'll make Sebastian do it Ciel~! I'm not stupid :p You don't do anything for yourself, it's really cute actually. So helpless and innocent... ^/^ If I could I'd just eat. You. up. You drop your phone on the desk with a sigh and stand. The prospect of freeing Sebastian from whatever hell he was in for afternoon tea felt safer then letting Alois continue down this path of...no. You didn't even want to think it. It gave you the creeps.

Claude and Alois

"Claude, which is better?" You hear Claude sigh as you call for him. He should have known by now that you didn't know about any of this stuff other than what you had seen on crime shows and those mystery books you used to read. Of course, lighter fluid wasn't the only thing your were buying. Lots of things, most of which you didn't even need. But if you were going to commit arson, well it wasn't decided yet, Claude was against it for a number of reasons, you didn't just buy lighter fluid...well actually paint thinner. It burned a bit better actually. Well at least you thought so. But with that, you were getting, paint, brushes, plywood, screws...maybe a drill if Claude would let you. He didn't let you around power tools after you broke another pair of his glasses with a nail gun. It was completely an accident but he didn't believe you. Claude doesn't look at the labels grabs the first bottle of paint thinner he lays hands on. "This one."  
You pout, bounding after him as he goes to the register. "I could have done that." He sarcastically pats your head and gives you the bag to carry outside to the car. "Can I drive?"  
"Absolutely not." You sigh and change the station on the radio instead. You weren't surprised he said no, but it was one time...well more than once, but you didn't almost get into the same accident twice. And everybody had a moving violation once in their life...or several. But you could firmly say you had never totaled a car. "Are you sure he gave you the right address?"  
"Yeah, why wouldn't he? I mean even if he doesn't do what he said he would, he still needs this guy dead right? He said killing anybody's no good, but he didn't even consider bringing this guy in, unless he already did it. And its..." You pause to check the time, "Almost ten. If a teacher isn't home and in bed by now after dealing with all those snotty brats all day then he's probably getting drunk. They do that a lot. I should know." Claude rolls his eyes, paying more attention to the road than what you were saying. Especially when you added, "you should find somebody. I could help. You know I'm good at that. I get to keep Angel as a pet and you can do whatever it is you do. The desk clerk has it bad for you. Sebastian too actually...she clearly has a type. And she's very uh..." You pause, struggling to recall the word Tweety had used. At least you think that's his name...its hard to remember actually. They all seem so alike some times. "Endowed!"  
Claude cracks a smile, and pulls up alongside the park down the street from the teacher's house. Very convenient actually. Some teenagers were sitting around he swings taking turns drinking out of a bottle wrapped in a paper bag. They were even trying to be discreet. It's no fun if you were going to be obvious about it. "So how are we doing this?"  
"You are staying in the car. You have a big mouth."  
"No I don't! I want to come! I don't want to stay in the car." You pout, throwing yourself into his lap as he opened the door. Claude sighs, pushing his glasses higher up the bridge of his nose. He always did this, but now you wouldn't let him get away with it. This was your idea so you should get to participate. "Quiet game."  
He pulls himself out from under you and you roll out the driver's side, clinging to his arm as you wander down the street. While you were curious about just what he was planning, you refused to allow yourself to break the vigil you planned on maintaining just so you couldn't prove him right. You could keep quite. Some times. In place of talking you kicked a few pebbles out of the way, and checked your phone a lot more than necessary. Did it going off count as being loud? You put it on vibrate just in case. Claude stops abruptly outside a darkened house, lingering in the middle of the sidewalk before shaking you off. "Now what?" A frustrated sigh escapes him and he ignores you. "Sorry. Quiet."  
You flinch when the breaker at the back of the house starts sparking. Smoke starts pouring out of the ancient siding, and you can see a flash of silver in the moonlight. Sneaky sneaky. You had forgotten how useful spider silk could be. Flames erupt at the back of the house and Claude links arms with you again and leads you in the opposite direction you had come from, down out of the neighborhood and back around to the car. The detour felt unnecessarily long, but the sirens were already blaring long before you had even reached the car. One thing about living in the suburbs, everybody noticed everything. It was annoying really. You wouldn't do it again. "That was too easy."  
"You have too much fun causing trouble. It's quite annoying."  
"I'm not annoying, I'm spirited."  
"Is that what they call it?" Claude firmly slams the door shut, coasts back down the road to take a gander at his handiwork before heading back into the city. "I want to go somewhere..."  
"I'm not going clubbing with you."  
"No! Not like that. We're going on a date. Not today. It's too late and my hair is a mess. Look at this! Spending so much time with that kid is killing it. Between this and my sweater I don't know how long this is going to work out..."  
"You insisted. It's time to reap what you sow."  
"You're awfully talkative today. Do tell." Claude shrugs, letting you flick through several stations before telling you to leave the radio alone. "It's the glasses isn't it?"  
"Something like that."  
You sigh and lean back in the seat. "Will you make me tea when we get back?"  
"You don't need the caffeine."  
"Then read to me."  
"Maybe." You change stations one final time then sigh and close your eyes. Now all you could do is wait for Angel to text you. Or call. You hoped he didn't call. You hated dealing with people crying. Actually humans crying. It was annoying. Wah my dog died. Who cares? You stopped crying over such things at least a century ago and you were a much better person for it.

Claude Alois and Angel

After a long morning of begging you finally got Claude to wash your hair for you, but the excitement was short lived when Angel texted you. You were a little surprised it had taken him this long. Unless it took him a few days to get over it...or process. He better not have cried when you dropped in on him. You'd have no qualms about having Claude pick you up early. "Our pet has come calling."  
"What does he want?" You hold your phone several inches above the water and read out loud. "'Sorry I haven't been talking to you, I wasn't ignoring you or anything. I've just been dealing with some 'stuff'. Geez...even by text this kids a wet blanket."  
Oh. That's okay then, sorry to hear that~ ;-; do you want to talk about it?  
"No tilde." You had already pushed send by time Claude said that, and waved him off. "But I like them. Besides there was a sad face. You can't lecture me about the proper way to text someone until you get rid of that flip phone."  
"No. Rinse." You set your phone aside as Claude douses your head in cold water, then gently massages a large amount on conditioner into your hair. One of my teachers died. I mean no big deal right...it's just going to be weird not seeing him anymore. Or something. I guess.  
But? :/  
What?  
Nothing~ you just made it sound like there was more to it than that he must have been a good teacher cus I wouldn't be sad if and of my tutors died. They're terrible.  
"That's because you're stupid and troublesome."  
"I'm not stupid. I could do the work, but what was the point? It was boring. Hell this is boring. But someone has to do it, and we can sell his soul to someone. I don't want to put that thing anywhere near my mouth. As is anyway. I do have standards."  
Claude rolls his eyes and wipes his hand on a towel. "I'm not so sure about that now."  
You stick your tongue out at him, his mark was long gone, but sometimes you wished it wasn't. Aside from it being very unique, at least then you always knew Claude was going to come back for you. Sometimes you weren't so sure anymore. You were spending a lot less time together than you used to... You could say that...Great actually. He was like my dad...since I don't really have one. Well parents in general actually. Nobody but me is ever home.  
Awwww ;-; that's so sad, it must get lonely then... I can always come over if you want ;) you haven't lived until you had Belgium cocoa. And I can raid the liquor cabinet~ Claude won't notice. And I have Netflix. Kids watch Netflix right? Or is that just an internet thing... x.x Heh, no people watch Netflix. And thanks but...i don't really know...not right now. Maybe this weekend or something. I've still gotta go to school. But no booze, okay?  
Okay...~  
Promise.  
What? Don't you trust me :P I won't. I swear on my harem. "Rinse." You set your phone aside again and Claude douses you in cold water again before drying his hands again and standing. "I trust you can handle the rest yourself."  
"Or...you can stay here."  
"I have no interest in watching you play your games. I have other things to do."  
"Well where are you going?" You shake water from your hair and twist around so your facing him. "I finished writing the report of last nights transgressions and we are writing a final report to give to Lucifer."  
"I can help!"  
"No." Claude leaves you sitting there. You linger in the tub as his footsteps fade into the hallway, further away from you. You sigh and slip under the water with your eyes closed. It was starting to get colder than you would have liked, but you didn't feel like getting out either. You had forgot to pack your blow dryer and Claude was the only one who could dry your hair properly.

Angel Ciel and Sebastian

You were a little surprised when you mother call you Saturday afternoon. You had cut out early Thursday and couldn't even be bothered to get up on time this morning, but you never thought she'd actually answer the phone when the school called. When you used to try calling her she never seemed to answer, let alone return one of your calls. "Angel, what's wrong? Your principal says you've been cutting class."  
"I wasn't. I'm sick." You try to fake a cough in your defense, but it didn't even sound real, and she wasn't convinced.  
"You don't sound very sick to me. You should be in bed sleeping then. Do you want me to call Mrs. Johnson and have her look in on you?"  
"No! I can take care of myself." The last time that happened Mrs. Johnson smothered you, and she wouldn't leave until your mother had returned. She even started making you stay at her house. It was a nightmare. You'd have to be completely immobilized to even consider the option. At that point you'd rather check yourself into the emergency room than stay here. "I'm fine. I just needed a little break. I'm a little worn out."  
"Alright...if you say so sweetheart. Have you been taking your vitamins? And don't tell me you've been cooping yourself up inside all day. Fresh air and sunshine does wonders."  
"Yes and yes. I'm fine. A couple friends have been keeping me company."  
"Oh...! That's nice to hear then. Don't stay up too late, and make sure you clean up after yourselves then. If you're old enough to take care of yourself all of the sudden you can clean up for you mama some times too. But don't work yourself too hard. I'll call your school and tell them you aren't coming in Monday either so try to get some sleep. Drink some orange juice and... take a walk this weekend. It's supposed to be nice." Her phone cuts out a few times, then she rushes, "shoot, gotta go...dying...you...heart."  
The call drops and you hang up the phone with a sigh. You flop back onto the couch, trying in vain to find a half-ways decent movie. You had spent most of the yesterday debating whether or not you were going to text Alois, but in the end fear won out and you hadn't. A knock on the door puts an end to your channel surfing and you roll off the couch to answer it, expecting to see Alois standing there with the alcohol you told him not to bring and hot chocolate. It wasn't, but you were equally as surprised. It was Ciel and Sebastian. You stare at the for a few seconds, unsure of what your were supposed to say and unable to remove yourself from the doorway to let them inside like you knew you were supposed to. Sebastian clears his throat and gently prompts you. "I think it would be best to discuss this inside."  
When you don't immediately move Ciel gives you a firm shove into the house. You stumble back into the entry area. It wasn't until Sebastian had closed the door that they began. "We have some rather urgent business to discuss with you about some recent events that have been going on in the city during our absence and since our return. I trust you do know what we're talking about."  
"Uh...not really." Odds are you did. Just about anything that they would think noteworthy you had participated in. Except Mr. Heartly's house burning down. You wish you know who had done that so you could at least get some amount of closure. It may not change anything, but at least you could have known the he hadn't died for nothing.  
Ciel sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. He was a lot tenser than when you had last spoke. Before he just seemed a little worn out and fed up. Now there was an entirely different air about him. It was a little unnerving. You found yourself wishing to give in to your desire to wander around, straighten the couch, wash the dishes, anything that would mean you wouldn't have to stand there and make eye contact with him. Especially with Sebastian standing beside him waiting for you to slip up. You remained rooted to the spot however, settling with stuffing your hands in your pockets...or trying to at least. Several times after as well. "You aren't that stupid."  
Sebastian rests his hand on Ciel's shoulder and leans in to whisper something you could barely hear. "You must forgive him, he had not been sleeping well as of late. There is much to do with all this unpleasant business afoot. Between the resistance attacking up and some renegade running amok in the city, slaughtering the innocent. There is a lot of damage control that must be done and other matters, I shan't bore you with the details. Forgive us for intruding, we shall take our leave now, but I-" Ciel elbows Sebastian sharply and corrects him. "We."  
"Yes. We. Would greatly appreciate it if you would come to us if there is anything you notice that might be troubling. Or if you just wish to talk. Our doors are always open." Sebastian reaches into the breast pocket of his coat and produces a business card. Ciel's number was on the front, but he takes a pen from Ciel and scribbles his number on the back as well. You take it, not knowing what else you could do at this point. Maybe you actually would end up calling them, just maybe not for the same reasons they wanted you to. You weren't sure you wanted to tell them anything.  
They linger in front of you, just long enough for you to the sense that they had come here under different pretense. The door slams open, nearly clipping Ciel in the back as Alois lets himself in. "Angel! Let's go-  
He freezes when he sees Sebastian and Ciel staying there. Ciel turns and fixes Alois with an icy glare. Alois visibly shrinks beneath his stare and retreats to your side. He dips his head, his cheeks turning bright red as he stammers out an apology and lowers his eyes while wrapping himself around one of your arms and hiding behind you. "Sorry about that. This is, Alois. Alois that's Ciel and Sebastian, they were just leaving."  
Alois dips his head again, mumbling, "It's nice to meet you."  
Sebastian smiles while Ciel takes his leave. "It's nice to meet you as well. Make sure you take good care of Angel."  
"Sebastian!"  
Alois flinches when Ciel calls for Sebastian. Apparently he was taking too long for his liking. "Y-yes sir." Sebastian turns, carefully closing the door behind him. Alois waits tensely as car doors open and slam shut again, then he breathes a sigh of relief, and lets go of your arm. "Sorry about barging in like that...I didn't think anybody else was going to be here..."  
"It's fine, it wasn't like you were trying to hurt anyone." Alois nods, shuffling his feet as you turn to face him. "What were you going to say?"  
"Say? Oh! Come shopping with me. My treat. I just got my allowance and I'm ready to splurge. We can get lunch...or brunch if you're into that. Or an early lunch...or dinner. Or whatever you in the mood for really. I'm fine with anything as longs as there's desert. I'm in the mood for something sweet." Ha pauses and frowns, as if he was only just now noticing you were still in your pajamas. "You aren't going like that. I know like sloppy-grunge is in right now, but that's a little too sloppy." He politely clears his throat and spins around on his toes. "No offense."  
"Well, I should probably take a shower too..."  
"I can wait. Claude kicked me out of the room. He said I was being annoying and I should 'go play with someone my own age'. He doesn't like Pluto Princess. Have you seen it? We should watch it! Are you busy later? Or tomorrow? Our last sleepover was a drag. I mean work sleepover isn't the same thing as sleepover sleepover. Right? It's just...I don't really want to count that as my first sleepover..."  
"You've never had a sleepover before?" While you probably couldn't consider Mrs. Johnson practically holding you hostage or the nights you had spent with Mary and Tex sleepovers, the same conventions didn't seem to apply here. You were already living by yourself.  
"N-no." He tugs on the sleeves of his shirt and drops onto the couch, keeping his eyes fixed on the floor. "No friends remember? A harem isn't the same thing." He whips his head around suddenly and wraps his slender fingers around the back of the couch, a little too serious for the subject matter. "Don't tell them I said that."  
You laugh, unsure if he was joking or not, but he didn't seem hurt so you guessed the latter. "I promise." With that you leave him sitting on the couch and shuffled up the stairs, taking a quick shower and bounding back down the stairs in something Alois hopefully wouldn't call sloppy. He was humming along to some foreign pop song when you came back downstairs, and rolls off the couch. He stands there staring at his phone until the song ends, then looks up with a smile. "Much better, you all ready now?"  
You nod, letting him pull you outside by the hand. You pause to lock the door, then let Alois pull you to the street and down the sidewalk. You assumed he had some place in mind, but he stops near the park and laughs nervously. "So, where are we going first?"  
"I thought you were the leader here?"  
Alois lets go of your hand and rubs the back of his neck, swishing his hips back and forth as he looks around. "Well, it's your day. Where have you been dying to go? Like. You're going to get hit by a bus in two hours. What's your last meal? Quick!"  
He gives you a playful shove, then takes a small step back, trying to gauge your reaction. The whole thing had caught you a little off guard. It was strange that he could be so pushy but so shy at the same time. The two conflicting traits almost never seemed to cross paths but yet they were right in front of you. Although Alois had changed quite a bit since you're first encounter. "Well...that bakery down on court street's always been my favorite place..."  
"Then we go there. Lead the way." Alois hugs one of your arms again as you lead the way down various streets and alley ways. It was a little hard to walk with him clinging to you since he bounced and skipped instead of walking most of the time, and all of that was a lot faster than the average speed trudge you usually did. Claude made it look so easy...

Angel Ciel Sebastian Claude and Alois

Claude sighs from where he was standing across the street from Angel's house. Him and Sebastian had watched his mothers return from their 'trip' about an hour ago, and Alois was supposed to be keeping Angel busy until he received word otherwise. Last either of them had heard, they were still eating. "Why did I have to come again?"  
"This is your job."  
Claude rolls his eyes. "No, you delegated me the task, but if you were going to come along and do it yourself then there was no point in dragging me along."  
"I need to feed and walk you or Alois will become cross. And when that monstrosity is upset everyone suffers."  
Claude sharply glares at Sebastian, his eyes turning pink as he shoves him aside and takes a step into the street. "Say that again and it'll be the last time you say anything."  
"See? Not enough sunshine. He was very-" Claude shoves Sebastian into the street and follows along behind him. He didn't trust the cheeky demon anywhere near him let alone behind his back.  
"Get this done with. I'd rather be babysitting."  
"Do what? You'll have to be much more specific." Sebastian spins on his heel, reveling in how easily he had gotten on Claude's nerves. He noticed it was much easier to do these days. They long night and spending so much time cooped up with Alois were starting to get to him. Maybe he was just physically in capable of being a decent 'person'. He should go back to preying on whatever lowlifes happened to fall into his web. Nothing could be worse than Alois. Unless he fucked himself over again and got saddled with something even more unmanageable. It was very unlikely, but possible.  
"In a matter of a minute you managed to get on every single one of my nerves when being in your mere presences vexes me beyond believe. For once in your pitiful existence stop fucking around and get down to business."  
"It is not in my nature to do such things. You must be very direct with me."  
"I hate you."  
"Thank you. I would not want the affections of such a shrewd vindictive man."  
"Should I call the red haired one then?"  
Sebastian freezes, all the color and emotion draining from his face as he snaps his fingers and the house explodes into a fire ball. Shards of glass shoot out of the windows like shrapnel and a car alarm goes off from the shock wave. Sebastian hardly flinches when a shard of glass slices his cheek open and slowly wanders away from the scene of the crime, following Claude back into the care and coasting down the street. "I hate you as well."  
"I'm glad the feeling is mutual."

Alois cheerfully skipped ahead of you, swinging a few bags back and forth in his arms. One of them contained a slice of cake he wanted for later, but given how he was tossing it around he'd have to peel it off of the the sides of the plastic container. Even though you told him not to, he insisted on getting you a phone case and a new outfit. It wasn't terrible, but you didn't think you would wear it anytime soon. The pants were a little tighter than you would have liked and the shirt didn't match anything you had, but Alois said it was cute. At that point there was no arguing, or reasoning with him. Especially when he had already thrown it in with the small pile of clothes and the new pair of boots he got. You certain they were for girls, considering there was a three-inch heel on them, but either he didn't care or didn't notice and you weren't about to tell him. "It's too bad you didn't like any shoes, I wanna spoil you to death. Well not death...but lots. That's okay right? People do that?"  
It would have been better if maybe he didn't, it would have been better if he didn't, for the simply fact that there were plenty of people who would just use him for that, but he seemed to live a sheltered enough life that it wouldn't be that much of a problem. At least you hoped it wouldn't for his sake. "Every once an awhile I guess, but people usually do that to people they're dating."  
He stops and turns on his heel, you had to give him credit for being so sure footed. "So I can't buy you cake any more?"  
You sigh, jamming your hands in your pockets. There was no easy way to tell him no so you didn't. "If you really want to."  
"So you're my boyfriend?"  
"No."  
Alois pouts, folding his arms over his chest as he starts walking backwards. "I've never had one though..."  
"That doesn't mean you need one."  
"But I want one. Traveling the world, getting caught in the rain. An old flame popping up at the worst times. Anniversary presents. Weddings. I want it all."  
"You've seen too many movies."  
"So it's not like that?"  
"Probably not."  
"Oh." He sighs, turning and clutching his bags with both hands. He freezes when rounding the corner, looking between you and whatever her saw. You rush to catch up as he starts stammering, then breaks off with a soft whimper, biting his bottom lip. "W-wait!"  
You take off down the street to where firetrucks and police cars were gathered in front of your house. An officer stops you from charging headfirst into the charred ruins of your house. Alois catches up with you, but doesn't reach out to you, clearly not knowing what he was supposed to do. It wasn't even the fact that your house was gone, but your mother's car was still parked in front of the house. "A-angel. I-I...you can stay with us okay? S-so...calm down...p-please." Alois whimpers again, hesitantly resting his hand on your shoulder before pulling away again. Did they know this was going to happen? Or were they the ones who did this? What? You wouldn't tell them what they wanted so they destroyed your house? Killed your teacher? And for what? What could this possibly have done? I'll kill them. I swear it.

Gus Kinney: hey just in case you get confused this is the end of the story i will make a part two of this story i only do ten chapters if i do get this far so i will be working on the second part of this story so i hope you look for that in the near future much love i would like to thank my beta for with out her i would not have my stories and her name on here is Sebastina Michaelis and i would like to thank all of the readers out there who read this if i can make you feel good for one moment then that makes me happy i will be doing a brand new story so the second part of this will not be out until i get to it i have a list so i will be going with it so i hope you will read my next story and the stories to come love and peace


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